New Yorkers Must be Smarter!

With the consolidation of the Star Bulletin and the Honolulu Advertiser some things had to go to remake the two newspapers into the Star-Advertiser. The more popular Advertiser had the Tribune crossword and the Star Bulletin had the New York Times crosswords.

The Chicago Tribune used to carry both. We could only complete the Trib (all week) and maybe the Monday or Tuesday of the New York Times. Forget the rest of the week! Sheesh! Who the heck does those New York Times puzzles after Tuesday?

OK fine, sometimes I don't even look at it after Monday! What can I say? I don't have my PhD.

Anyway, imagine our disappointment to see that the Star-Advertiser decided to print only a GIGANTIC version of the New York Times crossword. As if making it bigger would make it easier!?!

I'm glad to see we weren't the only unhappy crossword campers. After a week, they are now printing a smaller version of both just like the Chicago Tribune.

So then? Are the New Yorkers just smarter than the rest of us? Is there anybody out there who can actually finish the Friday New York Times puzzle?

Ummmm... Now then... I wonder if they'd be willing to make the Tribune puzzle just a little bit bigger for me?

And another thing: After four phone calls, talking to a live person, leaving an e-mail with the circulation director, yada yada yada, we're still getting two newspapers (We used to subscribe to both). But you know what? I don't care. They say we're not being charged for it and now there's no fighting over who hogs the paper.

Heeey... maybe we can have a race to see who finishes the Crosswords first? I'll do the Tribune. He can do the New York Times.

DOGGONE IT!: Something is wrong with the Tribune puzzle! Some of the clues are not there and it's harder than the NYT puzzle this morning. What the heck! Granted it is Monday so the NYT is at its easiest level. Still... craaazy!

Still Sick with Two Newspapers

We subscribed to two newspapers in Hawaii, the Honolulu Advertiser and the Star Bulletin. One of the main reasons was because the Star Bulletin was doing so poorly that they started offering incredible subscription prices to just try their paper. We did and just a few months later, the Star Bulletin owner bought out the Advertiser and has consolidated the two newspapers.

Well, they don't have their act completely together so we're getting two newspapers. I've called their circulation department several times and keep getting told that I'm the first caller and my wait time is less than one minute...and I wait and wait and wait. I also left messages. Finally somebody called yesterday and told Art she doesn't understand why this is happening but she would correct it.

This morning, two newspapers again.


They're working out the kinks yet. A lot of the staff from the Advertiser were let go. That's surprising to me. Why would you let go the staff from the much more popular and successful Advertiser?

Meanwhile... I am still very sick. My mother is convinced I'm deathly ill. She keeps telling me I'm not young anymore. Do I really need to hear that constantly? It's not like I don't know that.

I think this is a cold. It started out with a headache the day I returned from Illinois. The headache lasted about three or four days. Then came a slight cough that became worse on Sunday. By Monday, the cough kept me up at nights. Today, I've got a runny nose that is showing an infection. My voice is sounding pretty horrible and Art is having a hard time understanding me. No, I mean more than usual.

And meanwhile, my mother keeps shaking her head every time she sees me telling me of some other person she knows who wasn't being careful and ended up dying. She wants me to go to the doctor... NOW. I told her people don't go to the doctor when they have a little cold and that I know what a bad cold is since I've been in an emergency room with pleurisy.

Wrong thing to tell her.

Anyway, this is the reason I haven't been able to get on the computer much. I'm going back to bed and see if I can lick this frustrating thing. I'd like to get better without drugs, if possible. I'm going to make another pot of chicken soup and maybe try that Vicks Vaporub on the feet cure that Sarah mentioned in her comment to me yesterday.