Time to get up to speed on Boston lore. Allow me to recommend the Boston Marathon Crossword Puzzle.

Beyond an unnatural obsession with the Boston Marathon, a crossword of this sort requires a cranial overflow of race trivia, and a fondness for short words containing multiple vowels. Only this can explain the presence of Three-Down and Twenty-Seven Across.

Clearly, not every clue relates perfectly to Boston. You may want to brush up on Egyptology, washed-out 80s actresses, and New Zealand opera; just a recommendation.

But let’s cut the puzzle some slack. My quest for Boston has hardly been ideal. How can I in good conscience, require a simple brainteaser to stay on task? So let’s revel in our imperfection, train arduously, and satisfy those pesky vowel quotas.

Perhaps I’ll see you some day in Fifty-Four Across.

– Dean