"Do I Have To Spell It Out For You?"
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- Posts: 503
- Joined: Fri Jan 24, 2020 3:21 pm
Thursday and just missed page 2.
Wait, what board is this?
Thanks for the nudges and sweet puzzle Al!
Wait, what board is this?
Thanks for the nudges and sweet puzzle Al!
- rjy
- Posts: 1084
- Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2021 12:52 pm
- Location: Gaithersburg, MD
Still haven't cracked this nut yet, but shout-out to Al for the puzzle and, more particularly, the nudges: it's always good to have nudges that provide just enough of a toehold without spilling the beans entirely. Happy to still be noodling this one
Ray
- PuzNewbie
- Posts: 29
- Joined: Sun Feb 19, 2023 2:21 pm
I'm still having trouble and would love a nudge (yes, in addition to the four...). It's so frustrating getting stuck in the cycle of thinking the same things over and over! They didn't work before, they won't work now
- Al Sisti
- Posts: 2090
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 1:28 pm
- Location: Whitesboro NY
Sent you a PM. Thanks for sticking with it... I think it'll be worth it. Then again, I thought this was a 2.2, so what do I know?
- rjy
- Posts: 1084
- Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2021 12:52 pm
- Location: Gaithersburg, MD
Wow! Finally got it... with just 10m before WSJ, phew! Really nice puzzle Al, and again, glad there was still a fun, mind-bending journey even after the nudges!
Ray
- CPJohnson
- Posts: 1121
- Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 1:38 pm
- Location: Kingsport, TN
Is it time for more nudges yet?Al Sisti wrote: ↑Wed Apr 26, 2023 11:13 pm Wednesday leaderboard update (please let me know if I've missed you). I am happy to give more nudges tomorrow, should anyone want some. I do want everyone to eventually get this...
5 Schmeel
6 BenChen71
7 Mikey G
8 boharr
9 Meg
10 Cindy Weatherman
11 I K Snamhcok
12 ajk
13 JHSeeman
14 heidi
15 ReB
16 BrennerTJ
17 Mwoychick
18 markhr
19 Pair O Ducks
20 lbray53
21 JM
22 MatthewL
23 woozy
24 Snood
25 Anita and Steve
26 BarbaraK
27 WendyWalker
28 rayyandroid
29 Bird Lives
Cynthia
- KayW
- Moderator
- Posts: 3533
- Joined: Wed Apr 10, 2019 12:10 am
- Location: Chicago
OTC with remedial nudges. Very clever metanism. Thanks, Al!
Contest Crosswords Combating Cancer (CCCC) is a bundle of 16 metapuzzles created to help raise money for cancer-related charities. It is available at CrosswordsForCancer.com.
- Eric Porter
- Posts: 493
- Joined: Sun May 05, 2019 2:19 am
- Location: Nashville, TN
I still don't see it with the nudges. I kinda see what Al's saying, but the mechanism is still a mystery. Maybe I need a shove, or it actually has to be spelled out for me.
Edit: I'm off the couch with a shove from Al.
Edit: I'm off the couch with a shove from Al.
Last edited by Eric Porter on Fri Apr 28, 2023 8:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
- Al Sisti
- Posts: 2090
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 1:28 pm
- Location: Whitesboro NY
Thursday night update:
30 whimsy
31 DrTom
32 KayW
33 jbird
34 Adam Doctoroff
35 hoover
36 michaelm
37 PuzNewbie
38 rjy
39 DIS
30 whimsy
31 DrTom
32 KayW
33 jbird
34 Adam Doctoroff
35 hoover
36 michaelm
37 PuzNewbie
38 rjy
39 DIS
- CPJohnson
- Posts: 1121
- Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 1:38 pm
- Location: Kingsport, TN
Finally solved with extra help from Al. Great puzzle!
Cynthia
- Cinny
- Posts: 838
- Joined: Mon Sep 21, 2020 2:53 pm
- Location: Minoa, NY
- Contact:
Finally rolled off the couch with a nudge from @CPJohnson .
Cindy Heisler
- Al Sisti
- Posts: 2090
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 1:28 pm
- Location: Whitesboro NY
Friday night leaderboard update:
40 Eric Porter
41 CPJohnson
42 Cindy Heisler
43 dannyvee
44 AaronT
45 Berto
40 Eric Porter
41 CPJohnson
42 Cindy Heisler
43 dannyvee
44 AaronT
45 Berto
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- Posts: 584
- Joined: Wed Nov 04, 2020 7:33 am
Al can I get that nudge that the others have gotten. I'm glued to the couch. Even with the clues I'm lost. Thanks so much.
- edestlin
- Posts: 244
- Joined: Sun Apr 10, 2022 9:22 am
- Location: Michigan
- Contact:
- Al Sisti
- Posts: 2090
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 1:28 pm
- Location: Whitesboro NY
It’s reveal time. You all got that spelling was going to key, but whereas I meant for you to look into the clues, I suspect most did the “usual” thing, and started looking for candidates within the grid. I thought the title might be a strong enough hint when coupled with those four symmetrically-placed long acrosses, and their the non-word clues. And I even had the fates step in when I was (re)constructing the NW corner, with the serendipitous entry that showed up at 1A, ACRONYMS. Taking advantage of my good luck, I clued it to include “more informative when spelled out,” and – so you’d realize that I was referring to more than just acronyms -- added the “One example…” And I even gave another early hint when I “corrected” (read: Spelled out) my difficulty rating from 2.2 to twopointtwo. [And obviously, 2.2 was wrong. So here’s a quick note about difficulty level ratings, which may also turn out to be a solving aid for meta newbies. When I’m doing the MGWCC, for a Week 1 or 2, I always stay with the grid. When faced with a Week 3 and especially Week 4, the clues (almost always) come into play. So by that rubric, I should have rated my puzzle a Week 3 at least].
So what was the metanism?
There are four clues without words (I was very careful to not have any others anywhere in the clues). Per the title and 1A, I wanted you to spell out those four clues. Once you did that, you should have seen a word or phrase (at least 5 letters) that then is a clue to another entry in the grid. The initial letters of those four grid entries, taken in grid order, form the answer word...which also then has a tie to the title.
They were:
1970s = nineteenseventies - contains "Teen's Event." Looking through the clues/grid entries to see for which entry it could be an alternative clue, you see 54D Prom... hmmm... that's a "teen's Event." The entry at 54D is DANCE, so you now have the "D" in the answer.
Et. al = et alia. Contains Talia, as in Shire, who was in a “Rocky” relationship, as was Adrian at 18A.
TL;DR = toolongdidntread. This contains “oolong,” which, like 28D NESTEA, is a “caffeinated beverage.”
7/8 = seveneighths, which contains “neigh.” Neigh also answered the clue for 9A Horse’s huff (WHINNY)
…and taking those four matching entries (WHINNY, ADRIAN, NESTEA, DANCE) in grid order gives WAND, which, of course, is used in casting a spell.
Okay, truth be told, this was not my best-received MMM, but I was pretty proud of it, and I really wanted everyone to solve it, even if it took a few nudges. And 45 people did, which for a Week 2.2 3.2 isn’t too bad. And the randomly-picked winner of either a Utica Club keepsake, or a Blarney Rebel Band CD, or $15 donation to any charity is Adam Doctoroff. Congrats, Adam, and let me know what prize you want…
Oh yeah! Starting on Sunday, April 30th, please check out Contest Crosswords Combating Cancer (CCCC). Will Pfadenhauer (aka @AnswerPfinder) did an excellent job coordinating and compiling 16 special meta puzzles from 18 constructors (including yours truly) to raise money for cancer-related charities. The suggested donation amount is $13, but you can donate any amount you'd like to any cancer-related 501(c)(3) organization. Check it out! We had a blast doing them, and I'm sure you'll enjoy solving them.
So what was the metanism?
There are four clues without words (I was very careful to not have any others anywhere in the clues). Per the title and 1A, I wanted you to spell out those four clues. Once you did that, you should have seen a word or phrase (at least 5 letters) that then is a clue to another entry in the grid. The initial letters of those four grid entries, taken in grid order, form the answer word...which also then has a tie to the title.
They were:
1970s = nineteenseventies - contains "Teen's Event." Looking through the clues/grid entries to see for which entry it could be an alternative clue, you see 54D Prom... hmmm... that's a "teen's Event." The entry at 54D is DANCE, so you now have the "D" in the answer.
Et. al = et alia. Contains Talia, as in Shire, who was in a “Rocky” relationship, as was Adrian at 18A.
TL;DR = toolongdidntread. This contains “oolong,” which, like 28D NESTEA, is a “caffeinated beverage.”
7/8 = seveneighths, which contains “neigh.” Neigh also answered the clue for 9A Horse’s huff (WHINNY)
…and taking those four matching entries (WHINNY, ADRIAN, NESTEA, DANCE) in grid order gives WAND, which, of course, is used in casting a spell.
Okay, truth be told, this was not my best-received MMM, but I was pretty proud of it, and I really wanted everyone to solve it, even if it took a few nudges. And 45 people did, which for a Week 2.2 3.2 isn’t too bad. And the randomly-picked winner of either a Utica Club keepsake, or a Blarney Rebel Band CD, or $15 donation to any charity is Adam Doctoroff. Congrats, Adam, and let me know what prize you want…
Oh yeah! Starting on Sunday, April 30th, please check out Contest Crosswords Combating Cancer (CCCC). Will Pfadenhauer (aka @AnswerPfinder) did an excellent job coordinating and compiling 16 special meta puzzles from 18 constructors (including yours truly) to raise money for cancer-related charities. The suggested donation amount is $13, but you can donate any amount you'd like to any cancer-related 501(c)(3) organization. Check it out! We had a blast doing them, and I'm sure you'll enjoy solving them.
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- Posts: 584
- Joined: Wed Nov 04, 2020 7:33 am
Just got this with a huge nudge from Al. This puzzle was genius. I love the thought process.
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- Posts: 637
- Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2020 11:25 am
- Location: Florida
I doff my cap. Truly Gaffneyesque!
“I cannot and will not cut my conscience to fit this year’s fashions”. Lillian Hellman
- Al Sisti
- Posts: 2090
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 1:28 pm
- Location: Whitesboro NY
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- Posts: 1419
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:49 am
This is an excellent meta concept and I'm embarrassed that I didn't solve it. I was distracted by "two point two" and Know vs No (excellent song) and whether 1970s was "nineteen seventies" or "one nine seven zeros" and if I should spell out the semicolon in TL;DR, etc., and I never figured out that I should be looking for hidden words. Maybe next time...
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- Posts: 737
- Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2019 9:25 pm
- Location: Meridian, MS