"You're Surrounded" - September 25, 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.
Locked
VanVeen
Posts: 73
Joined: Sun May 10, 2020 3:08 am

#381

Post by VanVeen »

For the longest time, I was stuck on a wrong solution that was very similar to the right solution, but I kind of like how I thought it should have worked better than how it actually worked.

Oh well... a solve is a solve.
RobM
Posts: 173
Joined: Thu Jun 04, 2020 6:29 pm
Location: Fairfax County, Virginia

#382

Post by RobM »

RobM wrote: Sun Sep 27, 2020 10:10 pm I got nothin'. Putting pride aside and asking for a nudge. Anyone?
Thanks for the nudges; they worked.

I actually submitted the right answer about a half hour ago as a wild guess (before I asked for help), but I didn't have any idea how it was the correct answer.
User avatar
pddigi
Posts: 154
Joined: Mon Apr 15, 2019 5:57 pm

#383

Post by pddigi »

RobM wrote: Sun Sep 27, 2020 10:10 pm I got nothin'. Putting pride aside and asking for a nudge. Anyone?
PM sent
User avatar
yungchap
Posts: 26
Joined: Fri Mar 20, 2020 1:31 pm

#384

Post by yungchap »

ashore this week! had the right idea at first, but took a while to connect all the pieces
User avatar
Colin
Posts: 546
Joined: Sat Apr 13, 2019 11:57 pm

#385

Post by Colin »

Made shore late Sunday,
But in which state, who can say?
Please! A Cabernet.
One world. One planet. One future.
PQ63
Posts: 138
Joined: Sat Jun 06, 2020 4:17 pm

#386

Post by PQ63 »

Wow. Just made it to shore with 4 minutes remaining. Make it a Manhattan with Maker’s Mark.
EmilyW
Posts: 238
Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2020 10:03 pm

#387

Post by EmilyW »

Hail Mary submitted, enjoying a Barrel-Aged Snickerdoodle Porter from Servaes Brewco.

Edit: Picked the wrong one. I went for Kansas since I live there and because of it's central location. I was not on the right track at all.
Last edited by EmilyW on Mon Sep 28, 2020 12:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Joe Ross
Moderator
Posts: 5000
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 4:46 am
Location: Cincinnati

#388

Post by Joe Ross »

20200925 WSJCC You are Surrounded.gif
Last edited by Joe Ross on Mon Sep 28, 2020 12:05 am, edited 1 time in total.
Whole blood, platelets, or plasma: Donate 4 in 2024

PLATELET 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗲.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘀 ENORMOUS 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲:
𝟰𝟬% 𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰,
𝟯𝟬% 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰,
𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿 & 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗺𝗮. 𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗦𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗘!
User avatar
Joe Ross
Moderator
Posts: 5000
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 4:46 am
Location: Cincinnati

#389

Post by Joe Ross »

20200925 MGWCC 642 Youre Surrounded solution.gif
[EDIT: I left WI out as a "surrounded" U.S. state in my notes, when solving.]
Last edited by Joe Ross on Mon Sep 28, 2020 12:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Whole blood, platelets, or plasma: Donate 4 in 2024

PLATELET 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗲.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘀 ENORMOUS 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲:
𝟰𝟬% 𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰,
𝟯𝟬% 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰,
𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿 & 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗺𝗮. 𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗦𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗘!
User avatar
Tripod
Posts: 55
Joined: Fri May 08, 2020 10:19 pm
Location: Massachusetts

#390

Post by Tripod »

For the record, I love seeing the Party Parrot taking hold.
otlaolap
Posts: 245
Joined: Fri Sep 18, 2020 11:48 am
Location: Palo Alto, California

#391

Post by otlaolap »

It is absolutely gorgeous that the eight states in the border of the grid are in exactly the same places as they are on the real map of the states.
User avatar
hcbirker
Posts: 1985
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:24 pm
Location: Studio City, CA

#392

Post by hcbirker »

Going to be checking my email every few minutes tomorrow!😜
Heidi
burak
Posts: 246
Joined: Thu Apr 18, 2019 8:15 pm

#393

Post by burak »

Ah, if I had a chance to sleep on it I'd have definitely found the answer. I had already noted down KY and VA for the top row but didn't follow that path for some reason. Eh, had a bad weekend so I didn't have the will to solve this one, not gonna lose sleep over it.
User avatar
sanmilton
Posts: 178
Joined: Fri Apr 24, 2020 11:44 pm
Location: New York, New York

#394

Post by sanmilton »

otlaolap wrote: Mon Sep 28, 2020 12:05 am It is absolutely gorgeous that the eight states in the border of the grid are in exactly the same places as they are on the real map of the states.
I was just about to mention the same thing! Beautiful! Thanks again, Mr. G!
User avatar
RPardoe
Posts: 736
Joined: Tue Jul 23, 2019 4:09 pm
Location: Houston, TX

#395

Post by RPardoe »

I am wondering if the central letter in the grid (T) was a deliberate allusion to Tennessee (surrounded by its neighbour states)

Or my mind is seeing a random coincidence (after all it wasn't TN, but that would have made the puzzle guessable without seeing the method).
User avatar
ImOnToo
Posts: 442
Joined: Thu May 02, 2019 5:28 pm
Location: Texas

#396

Post by ImOnToo »

I arrived at the right answer eventually.
But, I was initially stuck on Idaho as the “correct” answer.
Following the patterns of the grid border, I noticed that the first and last letters of the clue for 36A were “I” and “D”.
That felt kind of meh. But, I couldn’t stop chasing that dog. Until Saturday morning, when I decided to just mark the “border” states on a map. State #2 was when the “Doh!” kicked in.
Last edited by ImOnToo on Mon Sep 28, 2020 12:21 am, edited 1 time in total.
Konnie
LaceyK
Posts: 127
Joined: Fri Nov 08, 2019 5:10 pm
Location: San Diego

#397

Post by LaceyK »

We played a 50 states game with the kids some years ago that asked how many states Tennessee touched. I remember looking at the map and marveling at all the borders. That memory served me well for this puzzle! I was drawn to Kludgy, having just seen it in another puzzle, and immediately saw KY. I solved before I even finished the bottom right quadrant! After solving I noticed all the other state abbrs--NY, AZ.
Still marveling at the beautiful puzzle construction--36A even looks a little like TN.
flyingMoose
Posts: 828
Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2020 2:35 pm

#398

Post by flyingMoose »

This one was interesting for me on several levels.

First, I decided to apply myself and not give up so easily. That and use the advice offered within the past few weeks after WSJ+ #2: Ignore the stuff that is not useful. :)

Second, I quickly understood how to use the title, a rare occurrence. Along with 36A, I understood that the meta was a state completely surrounded by other states - no oceans, gulfs, lakes, or countries need apply. It was also evident to me that the USPS state abbreviations would likely be used in some manner.

67A and 68A quickly gave me MEsses and AZrael. Maine and Arizona? That did not look particularly promising. Coming back to the puzzle a bit later, I realized I should be seeing MesseS and AzraeL - the state letters *surrounding* the rest of the letters in the grid answer. Soon, I saw that the eight theme answers *surrounding* the grid yielded the *surrounding* states in their proper geographical location relative to the meta.

And at the time, the Rating was a 3. No way! I don't solve anything higher than 2.5. The Rating later dropped to that number. What a relief.

Oh well, an example of a puzzle hitting one of little talent in the face, while others far more skilled took a little longer.
Last edited by flyingMoose on Wed Sep 30, 2020 10:38 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
DaveKennison
Posts: 238
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 5:28 pm

#399

Post by DaveKennison »

Okay, so I got the right answer, but I missed the fact that, of the seventeen entries in the grid whose first and last letters formed two-letter state abbreviations, it was precisely the eight forming the boundary of the grid that identified the states bordering Tennessee, which adds an extra measure of elegance to the construction. Good meta!

And now I see (due to a post above) that the eight are in the correct order! Even more elegant! Bravo!
dudeski
Posts: 371
Joined: Mon Apr 20, 2020 4:56 pm

#400

Post by dudeski »

Notice Tennessee (minus one e) is mixed in the middle section of the puzzle.
P.S. thanks to Joe for the prompt solution and explanation
Locked