"Two By Two" - August 23, 2019

[JimmyJam]

The main RH I got stuck in had to do with AMER anagramming to MARE and STALL becoming STALLION when the last L is replaced with LION, another animal. There isn’t really a fully fleshed-out idea there, but it was difficult to abandon.

Throughout that hunt, though, SUMOFMONEY kept nagging at me, because it did not feel sufficiently “in the language” as a standalone phrase (without an adjective, such as “large,” preceding it). I’m sure it IS in the language—just not in mine—but refocusing on it did help me spy the shore.

[Stukmn]

Does anyone else check all of their email folders to make sure you haven’t missed the email saying you’ve won the mug? Or is it just me? As far as I can tell I didn’t win this week, so good luck to everyone else!

[Thurman8er]

Does anyone else check all of their email folders to make sure you haven’t missed the email saying you’ve won the mug? Or is it just me? As far as I can tell I didn’t win this week, so good luck to everyone else!

LOL!

I just dropped by to post almost the exact same thing. Inbox. Trash. Spam. RATS!

[OGuyDave]

My rabbit hole was seeing “monkey” in money, as some have mentioned, but then seeing almost “orang” in “hung around”, backwards.

[AnnP]

That will teach me not to be too smug after a couple of weeks on shore. I saw the double letters but not the doubled pairs. And came up with, don't laugh, orangutan!

Question: are the pertinent long entries always Across? For instance, this puzzle had four long Down entries that I was trying to incorporate, ie uranium ore and petunia pig.

[BarbaraK]

Question: are the pertinent long entries always Across? For instance, this puzzle had four long Down entries that I was trying to incorporate, ie uranium ore and petunia pig.

Across entries are more commonly the theme entries, but sometimes it's both the acrosses and the downs, and occasionally it's just the downs.

My second ever meta solve was one with down theme entries - A Breezy Solve in February, 2016.

[CPJohnson]

That will teach me not to be too smug after a couple of weeks on shore. I saw the double letters but not the doubled pairs. And came up with, don't laugh, orangutan!

Question: are the pertinent long entries always Across? For instance, this puzzle had four long Down entries that I was trying to incorporate, ie uranium ore and petunia pig.

The only one I can find that had ALL vertical theme answers was the 2-5-16 puzzle (skymustard, royalcanary, etc., Ukraine was the answer). 7-15-16 and 9-16-16 had some across, some down, but 7-15-16 also had *s beside some clues. My records don't go back to the beginning, though; there may be others.

[Streroto]

So the gift I was referring to was 29D “double duty?” Which turned out to be STENT. As someone who has placed many stents of the medical type, this confused me for a while, until Mr. G educated me that stent can also mean tax. Still, the double part didn’t really make sense to me until I realized it had two T’s and I took that as my cue to pull the double letter combos out and voila. Not sure if deliberate but it was in the right place for a gift hint. Thoughts?

I think you are right about that being the gift clue this week - which I never even noticed so thank you for pointing it out! But the answer I got was STUNT, as in a movie stunt double. Crossing with bridge support TRUSS.

Face slap. You’re absolutely right!!!!

[MikeMillerwsj]

Happy Monday. We had a great turnout this week: 1544 entries, 90% correct.
A very diverse zoo of incorrect answers including 8 orangutans (one solver noted that ORANG is sort-of not-quite hiding backwards in HUNG AROUND), 7 rams (?), 4 monkeys, 5 pigs (plus 2 Petunia Pigs and one Porky Pig), 3 elephants, and sundry others.

Congrats to this week's winner: Oma Schrag of Colorado Springs, Colo.!

[Eric Porter]

Happy Monday. We had a great turnout this week: 1544 entries, 90% correct.
A very diverse zoo of incorrect answers including 8 orangutans (one solver noted that ORANG is sort-of not-quite hiding backwards in HUNG AROUND), 7 rams (?), 4 monkeys, 5 pigs (plus 2 Petunia Pigs and one Porky Pig), 3 elephants, and sundry others.

Congrats to this week's winner: Oma Schrag of Colorado Springs, Colo.!

RAM appears in the grid twice, hidden inside of ABRAM and RAMA. I spent a lot of time searching the grid and that was one of the things I found. I thought it was interesting given the title, but knew it wasn't the solution.

[Tom Wilson]

In but one of the many red herrings swimming around my ark, I lingered for a while on the literal "two" that straddled 30D and 49D. Thankfully, I abandoned that sooner than later in favor of the (eventual) right path.

[Commodore]

Can't believe I missed this, considering where I was this weekend. [aargh.]
Is it Thursday afternoon, yet?

[Bob cruise director]

Can't believe I missed this, considering where I was this weekend. [aargh.]
Is it Thursday afternoon, yet?

Was there snow there yet?

And did you take the cog rail up?

[Commodore]

Can't believe I missed this, considering where I was this weekend. [aargh.]
Is it Thursday afternoon, yet?

Was there snow there yet?

And did you take the cog rail up?

Hah! Indeed summit was overly crowded with Cog RR and Auto Road arrivals.
No, we hiked up the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail and down the Jewell. Know 'em, Bob?
Beautiful weather this weekend. But, the Observatory did record .02" trace snow
earlier this month. Up in the Presidentials, you just never know what'll hit, or when.
Alas, no sign of Mountain Goats. [sigh]

[TMart]

Congrats to this week's winner: Oma Schrag of Colorado Springs, Colo.!

Oma - great crossword puzzle name!

[jenirvin]

My S.O. and I have this "game" where, when watching t.v. or in real life, the first to yell "GOAT" when spotting one, gets... well, nothing but being first to yell "GOAT." He was a bit confused when he heard me yell "GOAT" for no apparent reason after solving.

[FrankieHeck]

My S.O. and I have this "game" where, when watching t.v. or in real life, the first to yell "GOAT" when spotting one, gets... well, nothing but being first to yell "GOAT." He was a bit confused when he heard me yell "GOAT" for no apparent reason after solving.

This is amusing me way more than it probably should

[Bob cruise director]

My S.O. and I have this "game" where, when watching t.v. or in real life, the first to yell "GOAT" when spotting one, gets... well, nothing but being first to yell "GOAT." He was a bit confused when he heard me yell "GOAT" for no apparent reason after solving.

LOL - does that mean that you shout GOAT when you see the Patriots game? (if you are not into football, Tom Brady has been called the Greatest Of All Time.

[Al Sisti]

My S.O. and I have this "game" where, when watching t.v. or in real life, the first to yell "GOAT" when spotting one, gets... well, nothing but being first to yell "GOAT." He was a bit confused when he heard me yell "GOAT" for no apparent reason after solving.

LOL - does that mean that you shout GOAT when you see the Patriots game? (if you are not into football, Tom Brady has been called the Greatest Of All Time.

Even as a rabid Cowboys fan, I have to add "...and rightly so."

[Joe Ross]

My S.O. and I have this "game" where, when watching t.v. or in real life, the first to yell "GOAT" when spotting one, gets... well, nothing but being first to yell "GOAT." He was a bit confused when he heard me yell "GOAT" for no apparent reason after solving.

LOL - does that mean that you shout GOAT when you see the Patriots game? (if you are not into football, Tom Brady has been called the Greatest Of All Time.

Even as a rabid Cowboys fan, I have to add "...and rightly so."

Not for nor against the Patriots, but agree & will add Bill Belichick as GOAT, possibly GOATer.