Performance Improvement Plans

Constructed by Katja Brinck with the free crossword builder from Amuse Labs

The idea for this puzzle all started Friday night at the 2026 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. Friday night kicks off with the opportunity to solve some different puzzles, such as a spiral, cryptic, or a split decisions. I was sitting with some crossword friends, and when the puzzles were being passed out, a particular member of the NYT Games Team was passing puzzles out in my row...and I exclaimed "hey - it's the guy with the Pips!" (IYKYK.) He laughed, as did my seat mate Matt Luter. And I don't quite remember how the conversation continued, but Matt and I then laughed when we realized there was another Pips connection, and when this turned out to be a symmetric, the puzzle had to be made.

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It's the Winter O-lympics

My favorite sporting event ever will always be the Winter Olympics. As a former ski racer myself...I live vicariously through all the winter sports. I never of course made it to that level, but I still loved it so much. Ski racing taught me so much about training hard, facing fears, going out of your comfort zone, and then believing in the foundation on race day. Mikaela Shiffrin absolutely crushed the slalom today, proving that there's no victory like one from a comeback. Today I made a puzzle inspired by the Olympic rings...this should hopefully be a smooth and easy solve. (I apologize in advance for any *almost* duplicates - that's what happens when there are a lot of Os in the puzzle. 😬) Made by Katja Brinck with the free crossword puzzle generator from Amuse Labs

Rain Rain Go Away

Time for a collaboration! This time with the amazing Matthew Gritzmacher (yes the one from Daily Crossword Links - subscribe here !). He reached out to me during a particular brutal stretch of rain for both of us (in Hawaii and the San Francisco Bay Area, respectively)...and a puzzle was born. Created by Matthew Gritzmacher and Katja Brinck using Amuse Labs

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