"I Can See Clearly Now"
- Cap'n Rick
- Posts: 1607
- Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
- Location: Nahant, MA
"I Can See Clearly Now"
Ahoy, Muggles!
Happy New Year, everyone! I just watched the ball drop, gave Mrs. Cap'n a kiss, watched the Boston fireworks across Broad Sound, and now I'm posting my first meta puzzle of 2024! Life is great, isn't it!? I got the idea for this one while recently at the optometrist's office. Surprisingly, my eyesight actually improved since my last visit, which I guess is somewhat common among us folks "of a certain age". Hopefully my good experience with eye chart resolution will carry over to my 2024 New Year's resolutions. We'll just have to wait and "see"! I'd like to thank @Abide, @Al Sisti, @boharr, and @Joe Ross for pretesting and technical help.
The meta answer is a good look for solvers.
"I Can See Clearly Now" - Crosshare
"I Can See Clearly Now" - PUZ
"I Can See Clearly Now" - PDF
"I Can See Clearly Now" - Spreadsheet
Difficulty
I think this one will play harder than usual. I'm calling it "A Bit Choppy", but a few anxious surfers are surveying the conditions from the parking lot.
Nudges are here.
Solution is here.
Good luck!
Cap'n Rick
Note: I'll be traveling this week, but I'll do my best to keep up with postings and PMs.
Last edited by Cap'n Rick on Mon Jan 08, 2024 10:27 am, edited 3 times in total.
- Abide
- Moderator
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- Location: Biloxi
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Thanks to @Cap'n Rick for getting MMM off to a fresh year!
Now that Will is back on Sunday, the SSS will go on hiatus.
Now that Will is back on Sunday, the SSS will go on hiatus.
The site is just a web page, a meeting place, a clubhouse - it's the group that's special.
—Brian MacDonald
—Brian MacDonald
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- Posts: 635
- Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2020 11:25 am
- Location: Florida
Well, you can guess what kind of New Year’s Eve we’re having at my house. Hoorah for a meta puzzle!
“I cannot and will not cut my conscience to fit this year’s fashions”. Lillian Hellman
- benchen71
- Posts: 2536
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- Location: Melbourne, Australia
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Couch has been vacated! Happy new year, everyone!
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
- Meg
- Posts: 2199
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- Location: St. Petersburg, FL
OTC with a shove in the right direction. Very nicely done, Cap’n! Great start to the new year!
Check out and support http://CrosswordsForCancer.com.
- HeadinHome
- Posts: 1131
- Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 9:06 am
- Location: Charlotte, NC
I have come up with so many great mechanisms that could be inspired by this title and/or a trip to the optometrist! Unfortunately, none of them work on THIS puzzle….
The other Wendy.
- Cap'n Rick
- Posts: 1607
- Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
- Location: Nahant, MA
Hmm, maybe my eyesight isn't as good as I thought. Upon further reflection, that eye chart may have looked like this:HeadinHome wrote: ↑Mon Jan 01, 2024 12:10 pm I have come up with so many great mechanisms that could be inspired by this title and/or a trip to the optometrist! Unfortunately, none of them work on THIS puzzle….
- DrTom
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- Location: Jacksonville, FL
What she said....HeadinHome wrote: ↑Mon Jan 01, 2024 12:10 pm I have come up with so many great mechanisms that could be inspired by this title and/or a trip to the optometrist! Unfortunately, none of them work on THIS puzzle….
NUDGES!I am always willing to give nudges where needed; metas should be about fun, not frustration. Send me what you have done so far because often you are closer than you think!
- Cap'n Rick
- Posts: 1607
- Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
- Location: Nahant, MA
Hmm, nearly 4:00 ET, and still only a handful of solvers. Either folks are still recovering from late-night New Year's Eve parties, or this meta is harder than expected. Before Mrs. Cap'n and I head out on the road tomorrow, let me offer up a special New Year's Day nudge to help get this party started!
- hcbirker
- Posts: 2074
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:24 pm
- Location: Studio City, CA
Finally! The hint helped. Still had to back solve for one letter. Very nice Cap'n!
Heidi
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- Posts: 800
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- Location: Atlanta, GA
Actually figured what the nudge was, but was missing some letters. Like @hcbirker, had to backsolve for the last one (I'll bet it was the same one). Thanks for the puzzle, Rick!
Matthew
- lbray53
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- Location: Elkhorn, WI
OTC though I was stuck on the couch for much of the day. Meg patiently dragged me off the couch but it was still quite an effort to stand up!
My avatar proves that it is sometimes better to be lucky than good!
- HeadinHome
- Posts: 1131
- Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 9:06 am
- Location: Charlotte, NC
I hear what the nudge is telling me but I must be applying it wrong because I still have jibberish. Getting some help from other solvers to help me see more clearly. (UPDATE - gently nudged into a different but similar tack. Got it.)
Last edited by HeadinHome on Tue Jan 02, 2024 11:46 pm, edited 2 times in total.
The other Wendy.
- MarkWoychick
- Site Admin
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- Location: Boise, ID
OTC with the New Year's Day nudge - thanks for the puzzle (and the nudge), @Cap'n Rick! Happy new year, and I look forward to many more of your puzzles in 2024
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
- DrTom
- Posts: 3916
- Joined: Sat Apr 20, 2019 6:46 pm
- Location: Jacksonville, FL
What she said...again! I thought this a long time ago but the application did not make sense then and it doesn't now, obviously I am NOT seeing clearly.HeadinHome wrote: ↑Mon Jan 01, 2024 10:02 pm I hear what the nudge is telling me but I must be applying it wrong because I still have jibberish. Getting some help from other solvers to help me see more clearly.
NUDGES!I am always willing to give nudges where needed; metas should be about fun, not frustration. Send me what you have done so far because often you are closer than you think!
- Cap'n Rick
- Posts: 1607
- Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
- Location: Nahant, MA
Leaderboard
Well, it's official - it's a harder than average meta. Despite the fact that several folks have completed the grid (Crosshare says 132 so far), we only have a dozen solvers including testers:
Abide (TS)
Al Sisti (TS)
boharr (TS)
benchen71
Cindy Weatherman
Meg
Hector
DIS
hcbirker
MatthewL
lbray53
MarkWoychick
Before I hit the road, let me leave you with another subtle nudge:
Good luck! More nudges tomorrow!
Edit: Emphasis added to "Roadtrip Nudge" above...
Well, it's official - it's a harder than average meta. Despite the fact that several folks have completed the grid (Crosshare says 132 so far), we only have a dozen solvers including testers:
Abide (TS)
Al Sisti (TS)
boharr (TS)
benchen71
Cindy Weatherman
Meg
Hector
DIS
hcbirker
MatthewL
lbray53
MarkWoychick
Before I hit the road, let me leave you with another subtle nudge:
Good luck! More nudges tomorrow!
Edit: Emphasis added to "Roadtrip Nudge" above...
Last edited by Cap'n Rick on Tue Jan 02, 2024 9:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
- ChrisKochmanski
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- HeadinHome
- Posts: 1131
- Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 9:06 am
- Location: Charlotte, NC
Got it now, thanks to a great nudge (From Meg… did not look at the second posted nudge yet). I was doing something very close to the right thing, but backwards, sort of (which ALSO would have made a great mechanism… I’m writing all these down in my handy-dandy notebook of stuff I can do after I retire, page titled “metanisms to make a puzzle from”).
OTC.
OTC.
The other Wendy.
- DrTom
- Posts: 3916
- Joined: Sat Apr 20, 2019 6:46 pm
- Location: Jacksonville, FL
Great puzzle and a real mind tonic for the new year. Took forever and needed a MEGa nudge, but arrived at the destination with a clearly novel use of the language. Thanks Rick!
Now I am interested to see the "Son of Clearly" by HeadinHome! The MEOW would welcome it Wendy - I'm just sayin.
Now I am interested to see the "Son of Clearly" by HeadinHome! The MEOW would welcome it Wendy - I'm just sayin.
NUDGES!I am always willing to give nudges where needed; metas should be about fun, not frustration. Send me what you have done so far because often you are closer than you think!
- HeadinHome
- Posts: 1131
- Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 9:06 am
- Location: Charlotte, NC
I would be deeply grateful to have that kind of down-time in my schedule right now. But I look forward to it, some day!
The other Wendy.