Monday the 28th

NYT 3:33
CS 3:23
NYS 3:18
LAT 2:43

Constructor Stanley Newman (Hi, Stan!) makes a rare appearance outside the Newsday puzzle he edits, serving up a straightforward Monday NYT with a smattering of crisp 8- and 9-letter terms in the fill. Now, my solving time (compared to my times for most Monday NYTs) makes it look as if this puzzle's tougher than usual, but it reflects repeated bouts of carelessness. I wanted to beat the 3-minute mark, but still had an empty square when I clicked "Done"; I filled in that square and then learned I had a typo, and of course it was in the bottom right corner of the grid and I started double-checking in the upper left. (Sigh.)

Jack McInturff's Sun puzzle, "Three Y's Men," has a theme that doesn't do much for me, but I got a kick out of the fill. For example, who didn't enjoy seeing BARFY, the dog in the "Family Circus" comic strip? I forgot all about him. Then there's BLOOPERS, SKYCAP, LUCKY YOU (with two more Y's, neither of them included in a theme entry), and the CREPE/LATKE combo plate. And I owe thanks to the New Yorker because this week's gossipy article about mathematicians (link will probably expire shortly) reminded me that topologists do MATH.