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    barnacle

    Explore "barnacle" with insightful episodes like "Fill Me In #385: These things don’t have guacamole in common.", "Fill Me In #330: One wrecking ball away from heaven.", "Fill Me In #329: Cryptics, cryptics, (almost) nothing but cryptics!", "Fill Me In #328: 85% quality content; 15% pants." and "Fill Me In #327: I think I’m expressing the amount of surprise I have." from podcasts like ""Fill Me In", "Fill Me In", "Fill Me In", "Fill Me In" and "Fill Me In"" and more!

    Episodes (46)

    Fill Me In #385: These things don’t have guacamole in common.

    Fill Me In #385: These things don’t have guacamole in common.

    You know what an extra long show (usually) means? More Ben Zimmer! This week, Ryan and Brian are joined by their dear friend The Barnacle who educates on demonyms and other wonderful topics. Also: a week in crosswords and a rousing edition of Kealoa featuring EON vs. ERA.

    Click ahead to read Ben's Wall Street Journal articles on "hoosier" and "dude." 

    If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon.

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #330: One wrecking ball away from heaven.

    Fill Me In #330: One wrecking ball away from heaven.
    He's back! This week, Brian is thrilled to welcome Ryan back into the studio for a show full of stories Hawaiian, deep dives ACEd, and thundery puzzles NewYorkTimesed. All that, plus there's a new contest crossword at https://bit.ly/fmi330con!

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month -- including today!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #329: Cryptics, cryptics, (almost) nothing but cryptics!

    Fill Me In #329: Cryptics, cryptics, (almost) nothing but cryptics!
    While Ryan is still on vacation, Brian is once again joined by Ben "The Barnacle" Zimmer! Coming in a smidge shorter than last week's show, Ben and Brian spend most of the episode talking all about cryptic crosswords -- history, evolution, Twitch streaming, and a Thunder Round of some of their favorites from the past week.

    Find more of Ben Zimmer on Twitter and on his other podcast, Spectacular Vernacular. And read the two articles he mentions on this show, the ones from Beyond Wordplay and Slate.

    There's a contest crossword, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi328con

    . And if you want to check out any of the cryptic crosswords mentioned on the show today, go to Daily Crossword Links for those and more!

    Stuff to click:

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month -- including today!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #328: 85% quality content; 15% pants.

    Fill Me In #328: 85% quality content; 15% pants.

    This week, Ryan is in Hawaii so Brian is joined by Ben "The Barnacle" Zimmer! It's a super-sized episode jam-packed with Word of the Year reflections, New York Times crosswords in the Thunder Round, a little behind-the-scenes at Daily Crossword Links, Wordle (the wildest new word puzzle craze), and an assortment of nonsense including knitting, darning, and a soupçon of meat references.

    Find more of Ben Zimmer on Twitter and on his other podcast, Spectacular Vernacular.

    There's a new contest crossword, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi328con

    Stuff to click:

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month -- including today!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #327: I think I’m expressing the amount of surprise I have.

    Fill Me In #327: I think I’m expressing the amount of surprise I have.

    This week, Ryan and Brian try out a new recipe, dabble in a few mini puzzles, and attempt to learn what a double dactyl is. The amount of sock talk is out of proportion with the prominence of this week's artwork. Oh, and there's a contest crossword as well, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi326con

    Stuff to click:

     

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month -- including today!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #326: You would make that up 60-fold.

    Fill Me In #326: You would make that up 60-fold.

    This week, Ryan and Brian go diving with the EELs, ponder on life as an understudy, and rave about the MIT Mystery Hunt (which hasn't happen and which Brian is too scared to attend). There's a new contest crossword as well, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi326con

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #325: Why are they both named after cold things?

    Fill Me In #325: Why are they both named after cold things?

    This week -- look, it may seem (at the outset) that this is a sandwich-dominated show, but somewhere around the halfway point we do a big old Thunder Round, so stick with it. We've got our favorite Viewer Mail of the year, plus a contest crossword, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi324con

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #324: You can see how their interest just evaporated.

    Fill Me In #324: You can see how their interest just evaporated.

    This week, Ryan and Brian welcome crossword artist Quiara Vasquez to the show, and we talk up the current AVCXpansion Kickstarter! If you have a few coins to spare, help out the AV folks with this wonderful venture. There's also a new contest crossword, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi324con

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #323: The Greek alphabet is out to get us.

    Fill Me In #323: The Greek alphabet is out to get us.

    This week, Ryan and Brian attempt to pronounce colors, German words, and the name of a cryptic crossword setter. There's also a deep dive into IRE clues and a new contest crossword, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi323con.

    Stuff to click:

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #322: I can’t see it, and I can’t say it.

    Fill Me In #322: I can’t see it, and I can’t say it.

    This week, Ryan and Brian untangle a movie theater, learn about Tamil poetry, and question the economic motives of The Music Man. There's also a deep dive into ODE clues and a contest crossword, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi321con. Please note: this podcast references, but does not feature, Tyler "I Love Baseball" Hinman, pictured in the thumbnail. 

    Stuff to click:

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #321: If it makes you happy and doesn’t hurt anyone.

    Fill Me In #321: If it makes you happy and doesn’t hurt anyone.

    This week, Ryan and Brian hear a long German word pronounced, discuss the ingredients of an unfamiliar recipe, and thunder their way through the past week of New York Times crosswords. There's also a deep dive into ALA clues and a new contest crossword, which you can download at https://bit.ly/fmi321con. TTYL!

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #320: Walter assistant.

    Fill Me In #320: Walter assistant.

    This week, Ryan and Brian christen a new boat, and dedicate at least 53% of the show to a chat with its captain. Included: Shakespeare, sandwich tacos, long German words, a wee bit of baseball, a full week of New York Times crosswords, and our latest contest crossword at https://bit.ly/fmi319con.

    Stuff to click:

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #319: A superfluity of nuns.

    Fill Me In #319: A superfluity of nuns.

    This week, Ryan and Brian learn a new song about cherpumple, get challenged by language that isn't real, and nearly forget to summon Thor. But the piece de resistance is a master class in both constructing and solving crosswords from reigning Lollapuzzoola champion Will Nediger! Check out Will's stuff at BewilderinglyPuzzles.com. There's a new contest crossword at https://bit.ly/fmi319con and you should visit us on Twitch ... if we ever get back there at https://twitch.tv/nextdoorcomics.

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #318: It’s like Shakespeare and Shaggy teamed up to write stage directions.

    Fill Me In #318: It’s like Shakespeare and Shaggy teamed up to write stage directions.

    This week, Ryan and Brian compare the piecaken to the cherpumple, ask questions about birds, and revisit the latest episode of #GBBO. There's a contest crossword (courtesy of Norah Sharpe!) at https://www.dropbox.com/s/w6ak3autbknv3a7/fmi317con.puz?dl=1 and you should visit us on Twitch on Saturdays (4 PT/7 ET) at https://twitch.tv/nextdoorcomics.

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #317: An expert in sconces.

    Fill Me In #317: An expert in sconces.

    This week, Ryan and Brian don't talk much about baseball (okay, a little), don't spoil the Great British Baking Show (okay, a little), and don't talk about a few crosswords from the New York Times (okay, a little). Please join us for Puzzle Boat 8, and use our Discord to talk with the rest of the team. There's a new contest crossword (courtesy of Norah Sharpe!) at https://bit.ly/fmi317con, and you should visit us on Twitch on Saturdays (4 PT/7 ET) at https://twitch.tv/nextdoorcomics. Also, according to some spam we got, we're the 30th most popular comedy podcast in Turkey!

    Stuff to click:

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #316: Chances are the British are coming!

    Fill Me In #316: Chances are the British are coming!

    This week, Ryan and Brian examine the cherpumple, learn about l’esprit d’escalier, and listen to a smidgen of classical music. Please join us for Puzzle Boat 8, and use our Discord to talk with the rest of the team. There's a contest crossword at https://bit.ly/fmi315con, and we hang out on Twitch on Saturdays (4 PT/7 ET) at https://twitch.tv/nextdoorcomics.

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #315: Carrot cake is the gefilte fish of cake.

    Fill Me In #315: Carrot cake is the gefilte fish of cake.

    This week, Ryan and Brian talk about pie, cake, Old Opoldeldoc (nope, we don't know either), take a deep dive into ERIE clues, and time-travel to a week ago for a New York Times thunder round. There's a contest crossword at https://bit.ly/fmi315con, and we hang out on Twitch on Saturdays (4 PT/7 ET) at https://twitch.tv/nextdoorcomics.

    Stuff to click:

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #314: There’s no juice in a nut.

    Fill Me In #314: There’s no juice in a nut.

    This week, Ryan and Brian talk about aliens, veronicas, and pecan pie, and the Thunder Round is all about New Yorker puzzles! There's a contest crossword at https://bit.ly/fmi313con, and we hang out on Twitch on Saturdays (4 PT/7 ET) at https://twitch.tv/nextdoorcomics.

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #313: You never forget a smell.

    Fill Me In #313: You never forget a smell.

    This week, Ryan and Brian dip into flying, the Japanese feudal class system, Ed Asner, and they promote Rachel Fabi as the next host of Jeopardy! There's a new contest crossword at https://bit.ly/fmi313con, and we hang out on Twitch on Saturdays (4 PT/7 ET) at https://twitch.tv/nextdoorcomics.

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words

    Fill Me In #312: Lesson from life: when you touch it, it doesn’t work.

    Fill Me In #312: Lesson from life: when you touch it, it doesn’t work.

    This week, Ryan and Brian take a deep dive into ETA clues, revisit their love for "Crossword Mysteries," and the Thunder Round is a week of USA Today puzzles! There's a contest crossword at https://bit.ly/fmi311con, and we hang out on Twitch on Saturdays (4 PT/7 ET) at https://twitch.tv/nextdoorcomics.

    If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki.

    And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. We shout out the names of our patrons on the first new episode of each month!

    Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club.

    Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you.

    Helpful links:

    We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words