"Grid Daring" - February 14, 2020

A place to discuss the weekly Wall Street Journal Crossword Puzzle Contest, starting every Thursday around 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. Please do not post any answers or hints before the contest deadline which is midnight Sunday Eastern time.
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Lucas S
Posts: 24
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2019 12:51 am
Location: Denver, CO

#101

Post by Lucas S »

Made it to shore this morning after the coffee kicked in. Have a great weekend, everyone!
Laura M
Posts: 1384
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:49 am

#102

Post by Laura M »

Having a busy work week, but I am on shore! This one was a lot of fun, but I feel like there was sort of a loose end...
Trey
Posts: 189
Joined: Thu Apr 25, 2019 8:27 pm
Location: Kansas City, MO

#103

Post by Trey »

Marion and I are on shore.......feels good - we did it independently for a change and arrived at the same place! Luck to all...........
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sharkicicles
Posts: 798
Joined: Fri May 10, 2019 12:03 pm
Location: Chicago

#104

Post by sharkicicles »

Seeing the obvious mechanism going on here, but have hit a wall for the time being...
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Bob cruise director
Cruise Director
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Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 2:38 pm
Location: Any golf course within 500 miles of Littleton MA

#105

Post by Bob cruise director »

Homer Buckle wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 12:07 pm I am ashore - great puzzle to enjoy on a morning that started out at 14 below zero.
That leaves Florida out. Northern New England or the upper Midwest?
Bob Stevens
Cruise Director
SewYoung
Posts: 726
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2019 9:25 pm
Location: Meridian, MS

#106

Post by SewYoung »

Still on the ship. I see something, but don't yet know what to do with it. Hope to be on shore before the deadline.
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ChrisKochmanski
Posts: 2157
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 9:51 pm
Location: Saline, Michigan

#107

Post by ChrisKochmanski »

Wow, it has been fun reading of the Valentine's Day feasts! I hope no one thinks we're fancy schmancy types. That's the first big night out we've had in quite a while, and, after just reviewing the budget, it will be quite a while more before we have another big night out. Plus, a Christmas gift certificate paid for half. Of course, there are times when we think it would be fun if we COULD be fancy schmancy types!
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joequavis
Posts: 500
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:29 pm
Location: Windsor, Colorado

#108

Post by joequavis »

Late start this week due to travel. Ashore, though sidetracked for a bit.
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sharkicicles
Posts: 798
Joined: Fri May 10, 2019 12:03 pm
Location: Chicago

#109

Post by sharkicicles »

ChrisKochmanski wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 5:32 pm Wow, it has been fun reading of the Valentine's Day feasts! I hope no one thinks we're fancy schmancy types. That's the first big night out we've had in quite a while, and, after just reviewing the budget, it will be quite a while more before we have another big night out. Plus, a Christmas gift certificate paid for half. Of course, there are times when we think it would be fun if we COULD be fancy schmancy types!
I hear ya... we live in a part of Chicago with some amazing restaurants and every once in a while we’ll go big. As they say, treat yourself once in a while!

As for us, tonight we’re gonna grab a bite at a local bar, but I’ll be cooking a big Valentines dinner tomorrow.
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hcbirker
Posts: 1985
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:24 pm
Location: Studio City, CA

#110

Post by hcbirker »

ChrisKochmanski wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 5:32 pm Wow, it has been fun reading of the Valentine's Day feasts! I hope no one thinks we're fancy schmancy types. That's the first big night out we've had in quite a while, and, after just reviewing the budget, it will be quite a while more before we have another big night out. Plus, a Christmas gift certificate paid for half. Of course, there are times when we think it would be fun if we COULD be fancy schmancy types!
If you don't do it often, then you appreciate it even more!
Heidi
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Bird Lives
Posts: 2607
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 6:43 pm
Location: NYC
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#111

Post by Bird Lives »

Usually, either I have the "Aha" moment and can solve the meta, or I don't and I can't. This week, I've got the "A," so I'm pretty sure what the answer is, but still no "ha" to clinch it. (MGWCC today went much more quickly.)
Jay
LaceyK
Posts: 127
Joined: Fri Nov 08, 2019 5:10 pm
Location: San Diego

#112

Post by LaceyK »

Ashore. Happy Valentine's Day. 17A was the first clue I solved and I thought lots of hearts and chocolate would follow! Alas that's for all the yummy dinners. Time for Sparkling Rosé!
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Jacksull
Posts: 283
Joined: Wed Apr 10, 2019 1:23 pm
Location: Scottsdale AZ

#113

Post by Jacksull »

On the beach. Or a beach.
Jack Sullivan
diplomatt
Posts: 80
Joined: Thu Apr 25, 2019 10:43 pm

#114

Post by diplomatt »

I went pretty far down an impressively lengthy dead-end rabbithole, but I self-corrected, and I am ashore!
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CPJohnson
Posts: 1078
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 1:38 pm
Location: Kingsport, TN

#115

Post by CPJohnson »

I’m with Jacksull.....on a beach somewhere. Count me ashore, Bob. Cynthia J
Cynthia
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jenirvin
Posts: 205
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:05 pm
Location: Alexandria, VA

#116

Post by jenirvin »

Easily ashore. Fun, quick puzzle.
~ Jennifer/jenirvin
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jenirvin
Posts: 205
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:05 pm
Location: Alexandria, VA

#117

Post by jenirvin »

Oh, and a happy Valentine's Day to all. Nothing fancy schmancy here. We went to the Fredericksburg Battlefield Park and the Battlefield Country Store, after, for great deli sandwiches and milkshakes. :)
~ Jennifer/jenirvin
Beth C
Posts: 168
Joined: Sat Apr 20, 2019 5:32 pm

#118

Post by Beth C »

Ashore with my spf30, ready for the weekend. Very clever construction. Good luck Muggles.
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BarbaraK
Posts: 2592
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 2:37 pm
Location: Virginia

#119

Post by BarbaraK »

yourpalsal wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 3:53 am I'm curious how many folks on this chat have won the mug, and how many years of playing it took?
I won a mug with my 31st correct submission.
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BarbaraK
Posts: 2592
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 2:37 pm
Location: Virginia

#120

Post by BarbaraK »

Jazzvibist wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 11:05 am
Mathematicians: Out of curiosity, roughly what are the odds that (a) someone could have a 100% correct submission record from the inception of this contest and never have won a mug compared to (b) the odds that someone could submit only two correctly solved metas and win a mug each time?

And again, out of curiosity, because the WSJ mug is such a coveted trophy, what do Muggles think about a possible alternate path that rewards ability rather than rewarding pure luck? For example, assuming that WSJ keeps submission records by submitter (big presumption), what about the idea of allowing anyone with 100 or more documented correct submissions to be able to buy one?
Ooh, numbers! You want to talk about numbers?! OK, if you insist:)

I have the number of correct answers each week since April 29, 2016. (WSJ changed the comment system that week, and all previous comments were lost, so when I started tracking it, I couldn't go back farther than that.) If you got every answer correct for those 198 weeks, you had a 31.5% chance of winning a mug.

The average number of correct answers is 817, but that has been increasing over time - 635 in 2016 to 1033 last year.

There were 30 contests before my spreadsheet starts, so if you want to account for them, you'd have to make some guess at the numbers and settle for an approximation. Taking that 2016 average for each of the missing 30 weeks, your odds go up to 34.7%

I'm pretty sure WSJ does not keep any data from previous weeks.

Some other contests do though - MGWCC and MMMM for two. MGWCC gives prizes based on yearly success rates, and MMMM has a yearly prize that is random but weighted by the number and difficulty of puzzles solved.
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