ASMA KHALID, HOST:
And it's time now to play The Puzzle.
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KHALID: Joining us, as always, is Will Shortz. He's puzzle editor of The New York Times and WEEKEND EDITION'S puzzlemaster. Hi, Will.
WILL SHORTZ, BYLINE: Good morning, Asma.
KHALID: Remind us of last week's challenge.
SHORTZ: Yes, it came from Mike Reiss. I said think of a two-word phrase you might see on a laptop computer menu. Remove five letters, and what remains, in order, is a three-word phrase you might see on a restaurant menu. What phrases are these? The answer is airplane mode and a la mode.
KHALID: We received more than 500 correct responses, and the winner is Lance MacBlane from Lakeland, Fla. Congratulations, and welcome to the show, Lance.
LANCE MACBLANE: Thank you very much.
KHALID: This was a tough one. So how did you figure it out?
MACBLANE: Well, the question specified laptop. So I immediately thought, what's the difference between a laptop and a desktop computer? - and Wi-Fi. So I thought, well, what has to do with Wi-Fi? - and airplane mode. And as soon as I thought mode, I wrote it down. I said, yeah, it's a la mode.
KHALID: Good, good. So what do you do for a living?
MACBLANE: I'm in IT. I'm a data analyst and a hardware tech for Polk County, Fla.
KHALID: Oh, OK. All right. Well, Lance, are you ready to play The Puzzle?
MACBLANE: Yes, I am.
KHALID: Take it away, Will.
SHORTZ: All right, Lance. I'm going to give you clues for two words. Insert the letters A-T consecutively inside the answer to the first clue to get the answer to the second. For example, if I said one who says Semper Fi and to soak in herbs and spices, you would say marine and marinate.
MACBLANE: OK.
SHORTZ: All right, here we go. Number one - to go through again as an experience and an uncle or cousin.
MACBLANE: To go through again as an experience.
SHORTZ: And the second half's going to be easier. What's an uncle or a cousin?
MACBLANE: It's a relative.
SHORTZ: Yeah. Take out the A-T.
MACBLANE: Oh, relive. I got you now. OK.
SHORTZ: To relive, yeah. You go through again as an - you relive the experience. Number two - the hunter constellation and a grand speech.
MACBLANE: Oration.
SHORTZ: You got it.
KHALID: You got it.
SHORTZ: And Orion, good. The name of a sea off the coast of Alaska and chewing out.
MACBLANE: Berating.
SHORTZ: You got it - berating and Bering. A Buddhist place of worship and a shaped pattern used for making reproductions.
MACBLANE: Template.
SHORTZ: Excellent - and temple. Voltaire satire and one running for office.
MACBLANE: That's "Candide" and candidate.
SHORTZ: That's it. To pierce slightly, as with a needle, and a saint celebrated on March 17.
MACBLANE: Prick and St. Patrick.
SHORTZ: That's it. Longtime leader of Cuba and a male singer with a high voice.
MACBLANE: Castrato?
SHORTZ: Castrato, good job. Yes.
MACBLANE: Oh, OK.
SHORTZ: Like flypaper and like radio reception during a storm.
MACBLANE: Sticky and staticky.
SHORTZ: That's it. All right, here's your last one - act of changing from one form to another, as Fahrenheit to Celsius. And the second clue is a chat between two or more people.
MACBLANE: A cat?
SHORTZ: A chat, C-H-A-T.
MACBLANE: Oh, a chat. Oh, conversion, conversation.
SHORTZ: Conversion and conversation. Good job.
KHALID: Lance, well, that was - great job. I was trying to play along a bit, and you were much, much quicker than I could be. How do you feel?
MACBLANE: Oh, pretty good. I had a lot of fun.
KHALID: Yeah. Well, for playing our puzzle today, you'll get a WEEKEND EDITION lapel pin, as well as puzzle books and games. You can read all about it at npr.org/puzzle. And, Lance, I do need to ask - which member station do you listen to?
MACBLANE: I listen to WUSF out of Tampa.
KHALID: Great. Lance MacBlane of Lakeland, Fla., thank you for playing The Puzzle.
MACBLANE: Oh, thanks for having me.
KHALID: All right, Will, what is next week's challenge?
SHORTZ: Yes, it comes from Michael Shteyman of Freeland, Md. Think of a popular tourist attraction in two words. The second, fourth and sixth letters of the second word, in order, spell the first name of a famous author, and the last four letters of the first word spell the author's last name. Who's the author, and what's the tourist attraction? So again - a popular tourist attraction, two words. The second, fourth and sixth letters of the second word spell the first name of a famous author, and the last four letters of the first word spell the author's last name. Who is the author, and what is the tourist attraction?
KHALID: And when you have the answer, go to our website, npr.org/puzzle, and click on the Submit Your Answer link. Remember, just one entry, please. Our deadline for entries is Thursday, November 4 at 3 p.m. Eastern. Don't forget to include a phone number where we can reach you. If you are the winner, we'll give you a call. And if you pick up the phone, you'll get to play on the air with the puzzle editor of the New York Times and WEEKEND EDITION'S puzzlemaster, Will Shortz. Thanks, as always, Will.
SHORTZ: Thanks, Asma.
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