Crossword Puzzle Performance Anxiety

Ye old schooner Xmastime in 2007:

Coupla days ago I sat down on the train and started working on my crossword puzzle. We're gliding along and then at a stop this ridiculously hot chick gets on and sits down right across from me. I tried not to ogle as I went back to my crossword. After a minute or so I realized oh shit, I hadn't filled in any letters, I wasn't writing anything. I panicked; instantly thinking shit, she KNOWS I'm just staring at the puzzle like a fucking idiot, she's thinking I'm a complete retard!! and this is the Daily News puzzle, it's not fucking rocket science. I desperately searched for a clue I would know the answer to. Nothing. And I know she's looking and I know that if only I could answer a bunch quickly, she'd realize I'm a genius, tear of her shiny purple blouse and I'd be all up in there. Then it dawns on me...she can't see WHAT I'm writing; she can only see THAT I'm writing!! So BAM!! I take my pen and just start writing, filling in squares with whatever letters or words I wanted; sometimes pausing briefly to act like I was thinking, then jotting it down. Brow furrowed. This is brilliant I chuckled to myself, wondering if she'll want our kids to go to private school. I could tell she was tres impressed as I kept "answering"; A C G G T T T E R and on & on.

"Completing" the Vox online crossword puzzle while sitting on the train this morning as a beautiful woman hovered over me made me realize that the digital 2023 version of this story is pretty much the exact same. 😜🤣