Puzzle Notes

Dear Friends:

We have a bonus puzzle today, courtesy of our friends at the Indie 500 tournament, which is coming up. See below for a word from the organizers:

"The 2019 Indie 500 Crossword Tournament is fast approaching! On June 1st, roughly 200 crossword enthusiasts will gather in Washington, D.C. to solve puzzles, hobnob, and eat pie. This year's tournament is travel-themed, and as always it will feature crosswords with an indie sensibility.

Today, its organizers are launching a meta crossword suite. A tradition going back to the first Indie 500, this year's collection, titled "Where on the Globe Is Carla Sacramento?," is a pay-what-you-want set of five interconnected meta crosswords written by the tournament's organizers. (Don't worry: hints are included, so even new meta solvers will be able to track down Carla.) To get your copy of the meta suite and to find out more about the Indie 500, head over to www.theindie500.com and click on the Registration tab. Unfortunately, seats at the live tournament have just sold out, but if you're interested in participating in the tournament, you can sign up for the waitlist in case there are any cancellations or no-shows, plus there's unlimited space in the Solve-at Home Division! You can sign up for all of that at the same URL.

To mark the occasion, today we have a bonus puzzle constructed by Indie 500 organizer Neville Fogarty and edited by Indie 500 puzzle wrangler Jenna LaFleur. Entitled "Unreal Estate," it'll have you traveling into familiar but fantastic territory. Enjoy!"

Be well,

Ben and the AVCX crew

avxwords.com // @avcxword