PUZZLES
Saturday, January 22, 2022
Universal Freestyle 4 by Hannah Slovut
Universal Crossword edited by David Steinberg
ACROSS
1 Common clickbait
article format
5 Sheep sound
8 Praline ingredient
13 On the matter of
14 Programmer’s
output
16 Ooze
17 Natural colors
18 Drink that sounds
like its first letter
19 Enjoys some
18-Across
20 Suitable
21 Cocktail made
with lime juice
and gin
23 Slanted, in
Sussex
25 If all goes well
26 Apple drink
28 Minor roadblock
29 Con artist, e.g.
31 Common bridal
attire
34 ___ sticker
(certain
dumpling)
35 “Lights out!”
37 Writing tip?
39 Cry on a slide
41 Word that sounds
like its first and
last vowels
42 “Noble Blood”
host Schwartz
43 Puerto ___
45 Cultivated crops
47 Sign for most of
September
49 “Strange ...”
50 Bud
51 Provide care to
55 Scratch up
56 Extra pieces
58 Trait carrier
59 One of 100 in the
United States
60 Ancient Peruvian
61 Part of LGBTQ+
62 “That’s amusing”
63 A rose’s is thorny
DOWN
1 Desperate final
attempt
2 “Took me a
minute to find
that”
3 Spa offering with
ancient Roman
origins
4 Burned layer of
creme brulee
5 Feathery scarves
6 Ambience
7 Crafts’ partner
8 Personal
annoyance
9 Prefix with
“friendly” or
“tourism”
10 “___ O’Brien
Needs a Friend”
(weekly podcast)
11 Skilled
12 What a crane
constructs
14 Home of the
Space Needle
15 Kid
19 “___ So Shy” (hit
for The Pointer
Sisters)
22 Segment of a trip
24 “Where ___ we?”
26 Game with a
hexagonal board
27 Pupil controller
30 Concept
32 Soon
33 Sequence of
synchronized
steps
35 Deep-fried
pastries popular
in New Orleans
DOWN
1 Material that
PETA protests
2 “Sounds right to
me”
3 Unlike
skyscrapers
4 Not pro
5 Peace Prize
winner Yousafzai
6 Suds dispenser?
7 See 8-Down
8 With 7-Down,
Marvel hero
named for a small
crawler
9 Bite-sized hors
d’oeuvre
10 Get out of
economy class,
say
11 Consoles
12 Is tense?
15 Colorado ski area
17 Taiwanese-born
director Lee
20 Prepare to
advance a base
21 Headspace, for
one
23 Opposite of trans
24 Really enjoying
26 “Unpretty” girl
group
HOROSCOPES BY HOLIDAY MATHIS
SUNDAY, JANUARY 23, 2022 Sun Conjunct Mercury Retrograde
A hectic conjunction of the sun and a retrograde Mercury
could bring on overwhelming feelings for those prone
to such a default setting. It’s not the only option. It can
be avoided by saying no to things, or by saying yes and
taking a sporting attitude about the challenge. Doing the
hard things is what makes us great.
ARIES (March 21-April 19). You’re getting to
the deeper levels of a task. Repetition will only make
you sharper. Even if you take the exact path you took
yesterday, you’ll still learn something new.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). As you help someone
out of a sticky situation, glue gets on you. The trick is to
stay in motion. Keep moving through it before it dries on
you and you get stuck, too.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Memories rewrite
themselves each time you visit them, which changes
your experience of the past but doesn’t change the actual
past. Someone else sees it differently. They may be as
correct as you.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). You belong in creative
dialogue with people you admire and respect. You’ll be
influenced by people who capture your imagination and
lead your thoughts to expansive, colorful new places.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). You feel ready to live bigger
but oddly enough, it’s best accomplished by simplifying
and focusing on fewer things. Progress is a function of
concentrating your efforts.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). A little cleaning,
clearing a bit of clutter, adding a personal touch to your
environment -- these are the things that make you feel
more centered and settled against the backdrop of an
unpredictable world.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). With a different approach,
things can and will change. With the same approach, you
will get the same outcome. Knowing what to try next is
the tricky part. Get advice from the experienced.
Smart people with the
wrong strategy are worse off than monkeys with the right
game plan. Read through all the instructions before you
execute the task.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Interesting
developments are happening in your realm of finance.
For instance, what was once valuable to you for purely
sentimental reasons may now have a monetary value,
too.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Remember when
you weren’t very well-known and you struggled for
recognition? Now, others struggle to get (SET ITAL)
your(END ITAL) attention. You are challenged to spend
it wisely.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Crimes go
unpunished by the usual standards yet, in a weird way,
justice will be served. The same goes for rewards. They
come indirectly but abundantly.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You think about what’s
around the bend and how you want to show up for it.
You are prepared to contribute and will have a clear
advantage over those who have not thought ahead, which
will be most people.
TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Jan. 23). You’ll have a
benefactor. Enjoy your good fortune, knowing that in
time you’ll provide as much benefit to this person as you
receive. Friends lavish you in love and opportunities,
including the chance to participate and contribute in
realms you wouldn’t have known about. Your financial
instincts are strong. Sagittarius and Scorpio adore you.
Your lucky numbers are: 9, 2, 14, 5 and 11.
Universal SUDOKU
38 Nightmare
40 Take a wrong
turn, say
42 Many AMA
members
44 Two-door car
SOLUTIONS
46 Consumed
47 E-cig user
48 Glazer of “Broad
City”
50 (Over here!)
52 Not well thought
out
53 Oak or elm
54 Zion National
Park’s home
57 Sprinted
58 USO show
attendees
Universal Crossword edited by David Steinberg
37 See 34-Across
39 “Shop ___ You
Drop”
42 God, to the
Romans
44 Birds “a laying” in
“The Twelve Days
of Christmas”
48 Gets on in years
50 Devices that
produce
15-Across,
informally
53 October
birthstone
54 Honesty that’s
hard to swallow
57 Kind or sort
58 Where many a
flap occurs?
59 Flea or fly
61 Short quarrel
62 Harsh cleverness
65 Minecraft blocks,
e.g.
66 Desktop with
Thunderbolt ports
67 Actress Torres
68 Commentator’s
column
69 Dweeb
70 Smallest bills
B7
36 Impatient kid’s
request
Beginning of Winter by Julian Lim
ACROSS
1 Tennis shoe brand
5 Doll’s cry
9 Brink
13 Noodles served
with tempura
14 Name hidden in
“final answer”
15 Word aptly
removed from
e___ation
16 What natural
athletes possess
18 Protractor
measurement
19 Regard like the
Cheshire Cat
20 Princesses’
headpieces
21 “7 Rings” singer
Grande, to fans
22 Slowpoke’s speed
25 Flea or fly
27 Acting like
28 “East of ___”
29 Removes the rind
from
31 Hit, as one’s toe
33 “C’___ la vie!”
34 With 37-Across,
“Saturday Night
Live” start ... or a
hint to 16-, 22-,
54- and 62-Across
East Oregonian
30
32
35
36
38
39
40
41
43
45
46
47
49
51
52
55
56
60
62
63
64
Grassy covering
Plead
Skeptical
___ tape (DIYer’s
roll)
Prefix with “nate”
Sriracha relative
“You’ve stumped
me”
Album that was
the Beatles’ swan
song
Address akin to
madam
Total pwnage
Cracker served
with chowder
Big, bugling
animal
Declared
Instrument that
gives learners
calluses
“Jolly old” fella
Love god
Buying channel
Waffle choice
eBay action
“If u ask me ...”
Many are grad
students
HOROSCOPES BY HOLIDAY MATHIS
MONDAY, JANUARY 24, 2022 Mars Makes Cool-Headed Move
Hyperawareness is often linked to anxiety, and ignorance
to bliss. Neither cliche is true, especially as Mars enters
cool Capricorn with wide-open eyes. It is possible to
be very alert without anxiety. This cosmic omen is a
confidence boost and a suggestion to go easy. Shift the
internal posture to calm and watchful. Let it all fall into
place.
ARIES (March 21-April 19). The shortcut is safe but
expensive. Whether it’s worth it depends on you how you
want to be spending your time. There’s no wrong choice,
so make your decision quickly and commit.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). The wisest way to
go about your day is to start with the ever-important
question, “Is this worth doing?” Maybe you won’t feel
the same in five hours or in five years but right now, if it
matters to you, it matters, period.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Grand developments are
merely a series of well-aligned small accomplishments.
The steps you take now are building toward something
substantial.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). You could explain
yourself but it’s wiser not to. Saying less allows the action
to move along. Bonus: You get to maintain the sense of
mystery that’s been working so well for you lately.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Because you are open and
supportive, people will tell you their thoughts and plans
even if they have nothing to do with you. In situations
where you are a team member or leader, your receptivity
will have obvious advantages.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Conflict resolution is
your talent of the day. One reason you’re so good at this
is that you leave your ego out of the equation. You hear
the other side first and prepare your offer or argument
only after you’ve gotten their story.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). You’re an expert at
determining quickly what can be controlled and what
can’t, then accepting your findings. Success is a
function of embracing the truth and tending to only the
controllable matters.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). You’re walking around
with your eyes wide open. You take your responsibility to
the world seriously. You’re busy creating the environment
you want to live in. It’s a lot. Allow for breaks.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). While it’s difficult
to quit established habits, it’s easy to get interested in
new ventures. Use “shiny object syndrome” to your
advantage. Pursue the shimmer of new goals, and the old
ways naturally lose their appeal.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). What you intend is
intrinsic to the alchemy of the action. The same move can
be made out of strategy or impulse, from anger, passion
or loyalty. Each mode will have a different result.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). If you feel like the
situation isn’t right for you, let that be enough to say
no. You don’t need to be able to explain your feelings to
anyone, not even to yourself. Believe your intuition.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You’ll contribute to
others according to your mood. Things you’ve been
known to give include: information, provisions, good
cheer, support or space and freedom.
TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Jan. 24). A creative, tenacious
visionary, you’ll sell people on your plan using a
combination of approaches. Your ambitions are altruistic.
Your keen understanding of what others need and how
you can benefit them makes you a trusted leader. In
turn, you’ll get exactly what you need, and in delightful,
surprising ways. Scorpio and Capricorn adore you. Your
lucky numbers are: 7, 1, 44, 39 and 14.
Universal SUDOKU
SOLUTIONS