MGWCC #726 - “One of These Things Is Not Like the Others”
- Joe Ross
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- Location: Cincinnati
MGWCC #726 - “One of These Things Is Not Like the Others”
MGWCC #726 — Saturday, April 30th, 2022 — Week 1 of 4 in MAY 2022 — “One of These Things Is Not Like the Others”
THE WEEK 5 IDEA THAT ATE 9 HOURS OF MY LIFE I’LL NEVER GET BACK:
So I’ve wanted to write The Great American Wordle Crossword ever since the game became popular. The best one I’ve seen is Brendan Quigley’s AVCX here, and this one by me was pretty good as well. But (cue ominous music) I got an idea that I thought would top them all…
It was: solvers are told they’re looking for a five-letter word found in one of the puzzle’s clues. Then there are only three five-letter words in the grid, symmetrically placed at 1-A, the central entry, and the omega-Across. That’s strange and worth looking into, and after a while they’d notice that each of the five entries crossing those 5-letter words was an object of a specific color — either green, yellow, or gray. For example, in one iteration I had something like SAGE (the herb, which is green), EDAM (yellow) and ASH (gray) crossing a five letter word (SEPTA, I think) at 1-A.
The color of the letter would indicate its Wordle status — green (like the S in SAGE) meant the S in the contest answer word was in the first space, E in EDAM meant it was somewhere in the answer word (but not 2nd, and not 1st since SAGE was there), and A was nowhere in the answer word (since ASH is gray).
So you’d get these green-yellow-gray clues on the 15 letters in these three five-letter entries, and then find the one word in one of the clues that would fit using Wordle rules.
Woulda been very nice, but it’s either simply impossible or just beyond my ability. I almost got one of the three regions to work, and if I got one to work, why not the other two as well? But sheesh, there’s a lot going on, so I’m just going to chalk it up to “not meant to be.” Stings a bit, though, since the aha moment would’ve been memorable. But life goes on, and our Week 1 replacement is Wordle-y as well (see instructions below).
I AM THOR:
Well, not really. Deb Amlen and I got name-checked by Drew Barrymore and Natasha Lyonne this week, however.
THIS WEEK’S INSTRUCTIONS:
This week’s contest answer is a five-letter word that’s a common first guess in Wordle.
Solve well, and be not led astray by words intended to deceive.
WANT TO SUBSCRIBE TO MY CROSSWORD CONTEST?:
MGWCC is available only to subscribers at my Patreon page. A subscription costs $3/month.
THE WEEK 5 IDEA THAT ATE 9 HOURS OF MY LIFE I’LL NEVER GET BACK:
So I’ve wanted to write The Great American Wordle Crossword ever since the game became popular. The best one I’ve seen is Brendan Quigley’s AVCX here, and this one by me was pretty good as well. But (cue ominous music) I got an idea that I thought would top them all…
It was: solvers are told they’re looking for a five-letter word found in one of the puzzle’s clues. Then there are only three five-letter words in the grid, symmetrically placed at 1-A, the central entry, and the omega-Across. That’s strange and worth looking into, and after a while they’d notice that each of the five entries crossing those 5-letter words was an object of a specific color — either green, yellow, or gray. For example, in one iteration I had something like SAGE (the herb, which is green), EDAM (yellow) and ASH (gray) crossing a five letter word (SEPTA, I think) at 1-A.
The color of the letter would indicate its Wordle status — green (like the S in SAGE) meant the S in the contest answer word was in the first space, E in EDAM meant it was somewhere in the answer word (but not 2nd, and not 1st since SAGE was there), and A was nowhere in the answer word (since ASH is gray).
So you’d get these green-yellow-gray clues on the 15 letters in these three five-letter entries, and then find the one word in one of the clues that would fit using Wordle rules.
Woulda been very nice, but it’s either simply impossible or just beyond my ability. I almost got one of the three regions to work, and if I got one to work, why not the other two as well? But sheesh, there’s a lot going on, so I’m just going to chalk it up to “not meant to be.” Stings a bit, though, since the aha moment would’ve been memorable. But life goes on, and our Week 1 replacement is Wordle-y as well (see instructions below).
I AM THOR:
Well, not really. Deb Amlen and I got name-checked by Drew Barrymore and Natasha Lyonne this week, however.
THIS WEEK’S INSTRUCTIONS:
This week’s contest answer is a five-letter word that’s a common first guess in Wordle.
Solve well, and be not led astray by words intended to deceive.
WANT TO SUBSCRIBE TO MY CROSSWORD CONTEST?:
MGWCC is available only to subscribers at my Patreon page. A subscription costs $3/month.
- boharr
- Moderator
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- Location: Westchester, NY
Oh boy, this will surely be a slam dunk. Not.
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- Posts: 367
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- MMe
- Posts: 307
- Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2021 11:27 am
Would never have got the 5th week idea without heavy nudging towards Wordle in the title or elsewhere in the puzzle. Green, yellow, and gray?
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- Posts: 299
- Joined: Sun Apr 05, 2020 5:12 pm
I was all hyped up for a gnarly week 5, and so it was a bit of a letdown to get a week 1 instead. But as week 1s go, it was very nicely done. Now I can let the anticipation build for another week....
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- Posts: 1419
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:49 am
Reprieve from week 5! I never would have gotten that one. Beamed up at #29.
- patpatchica
- Posts: 131
- Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2021 9:58 am
- Location: Memphis, TN
Beamed up at #44. This one was exactly in my wheelhouse and super simple. I’m scared for next week though!
Edited to add: Haha @59A
Edited to add: Haha @59A
Last edited by patpatchica on Sat Apr 30, 2022 5:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Overthinking is my super power.
- Joe
- Posts: 571
- Joined: Sat May 11, 2019 12:45 pm
- Location: New Hampshire
I'm sure the answer will eventually dawn on me, but I'm not afraid to admit that I have no clue right now. Been staring at it for half an hour. Can someone remind me why we do these things?
Happy to give nudges. If you notice I've solved, please tell me about avenues you've explored so I can nudge you in the right direction and not off a cliff.
- TeamDoubleTow
- Posts: 445
- Joined: Fri Jan 01, 2021 1:58 pm
I wonder if I missed a step but I think I have the answer.
Editing to add... Beamed up
Editing to add... Beamed up
Last edited by TeamDoubleTow on Sat Apr 30, 2022 4:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Team DoubleTow=Ali who posts here, Alex & Maya the hound(with occasional assistance from son)
- HeadinHome
- Posts: 1149
- Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 9:06 am
- Location: Charlotte, NC
Okay- so I think I know this one and if I’m right I knew it before finishing the grid, which is clearly not week 5 level. Am I right that this is super simple?? Afraid to submit until I see some more of you say yes it really is this easy…
Okay - some reassuring messages told me to relax and enjoy this soft pitch. NEXT week comes the challenge. Submitted… will report back here if this breaks my streak (somewhere in the 60’s).
UPDATE again - yes, on the board at 105, and the streak is actually only 57, right beside Jangler. And Heinz.
Okay - some reassuring messages told me to relax and enjoy this soft pitch. NEXT week comes the challenge. Submitted… will report back here if this breaks my streak (somewhere in the 60’s).
UPDATE again - yes, on the board at 105, and the streak is actually only 57, right beside Jangler. And Heinz.
Last edited by HeadinHome on Sat Apr 30, 2022 5:05 pm, edited 2 times in total.
The other Wendy.
- boharr
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- woozy
- Posts: 2320
- Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2020 12:40 am
59A. I love it!
EDIT: Oh, scrod! I'm going to have to make an obnoxious pest of myself again about 37D, Aren't I?
EDIT: Oh, scrod! I'm going to have to make an obnoxious pest of myself again about 37D, Aren't I?
Last edited by woozy on Sat Apr 30, 2022 4:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
So I just plain couldn't get my meta based on "Up the Down Staircase" to work.
My challenge it to constructors is to make a meta where the meta, theme or metanism is "Up the Down Staircase".
My challenge it to constructors is to make a meta where the meta, theme or metanism is "Up the Down Staircase".
- MikeyG
- Posts: 1456
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- Location: Chicago
- Contact:
Keep in mind this is a Week 1!HeadinHome wrote: ↑Sat Apr 30, 2022 4:36 pm Okay- so I think I know this one and if I’m right I knew it before finishing the grid, which is clearly not week 5 level. Am I right that this is super simple?? Afraid to submit until I see some more of you say yes it really is this easy…
Not a spoiler, but just another reminder of my sense of humor that I'm sure you asked for: I love goofy themers.
- HeadinHome
- Posts: 1149
- Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 9:06 am
- Location: Charlotte, NC
PS I love wordle, and think it’s funny that Drew Barrymore knows who Matt Gaffney is. Cuz Matt Gaffney just sent me some swag, and the addresses (from and to) on the mailing envelope were hand-written by Matt, so that makes me feel special and almost famous. PLUS, Matt lives in a small town in Virginia very close to where I grew up and I was just in that town having lunch with my sister a week ago. ( :
The other Wendy.
- MarkWoychick
- Site Admin
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- Location: Boise, ID
In at #75 - this was a welcome relief after a long week of non-solves. The logjam finally broke with the WSJ earlier this afternoon and now this. OK, back to work…
Contest Crosswords Combating Cancer (CCCC) is a bundle of 16 contest-style (meta) crosswords that we've created to help raise money for cancer-related organizations - get the bundle at http://crosswordsforcancer.com
- woozy
- Posts: 2320
- Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2020 12:40 am
I'm positive I got the answer (I'm wait to wednesday to submit though for the badge). But... I'm not sure I get the mechanism. I mean I get *half* of it but... How am I supposed to get it to give me the answer?
EDIT: Hmmm..... If I'm sure I have the correct answer but I wait till Tuesday afternoon for the Wednesday warrior badge, but I ask for someone to PM with an explanation, and they do before I submit, then (presuming my answer was indeed correct) is it ethical for me to claim it was a solo solve?
EDIT: Hmmm..... If I'm sure I have the correct answer but I wait till Tuesday afternoon for the Wednesday warrior badge, but I ask for someone to PM with an explanation, and they do before I submit, then (presuming my answer was indeed correct) is it ethical for me to claim it was a solo solve?
Last edited by woozy on Sat Apr 30, 2022 5:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
So I just plain couldn't get my meta based on "Up the Down Staircase" to work.
My challenge it to constructors is to make a meta where the meta, theme or metanism is "Up the Down Staircase".
My challenge it to constructors is to make a meta where the meta, theme or metanism is "Up the Down Staircase".
- ky-mike
- Posts: 2064
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 4:22 pm
- Location: Near Louisville Ky
In at #120 today. I debated between possible answers, but was able to suss out (see what I did there?) the answer.
Back to the WSJ, which is playing a lot harder for me this week than quite a few of the rest of this forum.
Back to the WSJ, which is playing a lot harder for me this week than quite a few of the rest of this forum.
- ChrisKochmanski
- Posts: 2269
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- Location: Saline, Michigan
- HunterX
- Posts: 1200
- Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2020 9:17 pm
- Location: Philadelphia, PA
Oh geeze. Is this going to be another double-failure week for me? I get that that would happen last week. But everyone's saying these are so easy.
But I've never played Wordle, though obviously I've heard about it.
Must be the $#%@& allergies and/or head cold I've got. Yeah... That's the reason...
But I've never played Wordle, though obviously I've heard about it.
Must be the $#%@& allergies and/or head cold I've got. Yeah... That's the reason...