"We're Back in Business" - July 16, 2021

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
User avatar
Cap'n Rick
Posts: 1501
Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
Location: Nahant, MA

#281

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Holy cow! I didn't have a lot of time to work on this one, but I think I just figured it out! Blind squirrel strikes again!
WSJosh
Posts: 152
Joined: Fri May 08, 2020 9:20 am
Location: Nashville, TN

#282

Post by WSJosh »

Still at sea…
LaurenB
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Sep 20, 2020 3:02 pm
Location: Columbus, GA

#283

Post by LaurenB »

On shore, but I’m not quite confident in the answer. I’m pretty sure I got the mechanism, but I’m not sure about the final answer.
PHOFER
Posts: 157
Joined: Sat Apr 20, 2019 9:20 pm

#284

Post by PHOFER »

Ashore but like others I'm a little confused about the three-letter answer. Yes, a three-letter answer is apparent. But there is something extra there that I don't know what to do with. Still, a very nice puzzle, and once again I am amazed by the skill of our constructors.
User avatar
LadyBird
Posts: 869
Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2020 4:20 pm
Location: Chicagoland

#285

Post by LadyBird »

I am on shore (or at least as far as the sandbar) thanks to someone who helped clear out the excess flotsam that I was entangled in. I won't be submitting but I am glad to have an answer! And this construction, as is so often the case, is quite impressive.
Omnibus
Posts: 170
Joined: Mon Jan 27, 2020 5:51 pm
Location: Chesapeake, VA

#286

Post by Omnibus »

Didn’t want the deadline to pass before declaring myself firmly on the boat. Isaac is getting annoyed at my frustrated rants!
User avatar
Bird Lives
Posts: 2581
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 6:43 pm
Location: NYC
Contact:

#287

Post by Bird Lives »

I know the answer, but don't count me on shore. I needed a nudge to decipher the mechanism, and even then needed a kick to see the obvious.
Jay
User avatar
Cosmo
Posts: 72
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2020 11:59 am

#288

Post by Cosmo »

On shore! Just in time!
It's a coffee table book about coffee tables
User avatar
Limerick Savant
Posts: 220
Joined: Sun Jun 09, 2019 12:22 am
Location: Mobile, AL
Contact:

#289

Post by Limerick Savant »

On shore with time to spare. Waiting to the last seems to be working for me. Started about 30 minutes ago and solved the meta before finishing the grid. Maybe a personal best for me though not even close to @Al Sisti’s time from last week.
Dedicated to no nonsense nonsense
User avatar
Joe Ross
Moderator
Posts: 4968
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 4:46 am
Location: Cincinnati

#290

Post by Joe Ross »

20210716 WSJCC We re Back in Business.png
User avatar
Joe Ross
Moderator
Posts: 4968
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 4:46 am
Location: Cincinnati

#291

Post by Joe Ross »

Some muggles have reported to me that they cannot see the image of my reveal. I am uploading it to this post, also, so you may see it twice.

Image

202010716 We re Back in Business reveal .png
User avatar
woozy
Posts: 2119
Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2020 12:40 am

#292

Post by woozy »

" But there is something extra there that I don't know what to do with."

I know what you mean. But I think you just have to ignore it. In a way it fits with my first several attempts at the them answers to get 16A in 23B I had to consistently and incorrectly go 1 letter too short ("NAME, ARCO, PANY, TTEN, CROS, VIFO....? I don't get it? ANd that's just 9 to just up to but not including 5" .... Can't tell you how long I insisted I had to go up to be not include the 5 all because ARCO in 23 A was 9 to .... up to but not including the 5... It took me a LONG time before I relented and said to myself "Okay, I'll try including the last letter just to see what will happen but then it will be ARCO-m and not ARCO so I know it won't work but I'll try it anyway". I really resisted.) . This time... I have one letter too long I just needed to ignore it. (At 10 we have a three letter word up to but not including 10).
Last edited by woozy on Mon Jul 19, 2021 12:23 am, edited 3 times in total.
Sphere of Perception (frustrating I can't tell you what this is about, but it's fun. 9x17 grid. Don't have a good title)
Easter Eggs(Easy!)
Preparing Eggs (Hard! But fun and worth it.)
hoover
Posts: 1175
Joined: Mon Mar 29, 2021 7:26 pm

#293

Post by hoover »

Now that Joe Ross has posted the official WSJ answer, I'll explain the tiny 5-minute detour I took. I got all the way to NAME CAR COMPANY AT TEN ACROSS, looked at 10A, and saw HAIK. Now, where I live, there is a car dealership called MAC HAIK, presumably named after a man named Mac Haik (pronounced to rhyme with Eisenhower's nickname). And MAC has three letters... I knew that was too localized to be the answer, but it jolted me out of a straightforward solve to spend 5 minutes Googling for a different car company called HAIK. Fortunately I came to my senses and saw KIA hiding there.
Ergcat
Posts: 753
Joined: Mon Jun 22, 2020 8:12 pm
Location: Seneca SC

#294

Post by Ergcat »

woozy wrote: Mon Jul 19, 2021 12:11 am " But there is something extra there that I don't know what to do with."

I know what you mean. But I think you just have to ignore it. In a way it fits with my first several attempts at the them answers to get 16A in 23B I had to consistently and incorrectly go 1 letter too short ("NAME, ARCO, PANY, CROS, VIFO....? I don't get it? ANd that's just 9 to just up to but not including 5" .... Can't tell you how long I insisted I had to go up to be not include the 5 all because ARCO in 23 A was 9 to .... up to but not including the 5) . This time... I have one letter too long I just needed to ignore it. (At 10 we have a three letter word up to but not including 10).
Yes, I had same problem at first...was briefly thrown off by seeing ARCO (16a) that turned up in 23a when I applied the mechanism ( incorrectly) because I was counting letters 9 to 5 ( not including 5)! But soon I realized my error and saw the correct sentence to solve. We were told that the answer was “3 letters” , so KIA it had to be!
User avatar
escapeartist
Posts: 419
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2020 12:24 am

#295

Post by escapeartist »

OK - that is not the answer I came up with at all.

I got: CEO

These 3 letters were nine letter spaces from the three "V" (five in Roman numeral) cells found in the grid - 9 to 5

*shrugs*

can't win them all... :roll:
* 2022 WSJ Mug Winner - I bask in its Glory *
User avatar
Limerick Savant
Posts: 220
Joined: Sun Jun 09, 2019 12:22 am
Location: Mobile, AL
Contact:

#296

Post by Limerick Savant »

This week there was naught to console
Since my answer was ready to roll
So I think luckily
I’m in good company
And the meta god’s blessing my Soul
Last edited by Limerick Savant on Mon Jul 19, 2021 9:13 am, edited 1 time in total.
Dedicated to no nonsense nonsense
Jace54
Posts: 496
Joined: Fri Jun 05, 2020 7:38 pm
Location: Iowa

#297

Post by Jace54 »

It will be interesting to see the number of IBM submissions. After initially making no progress with the long answers, I looked at the ‘A’ in grid box 9 and the ‘T’ in 5 and saw ambit in 1-across with the IBM in reverse. But that seemed too simplistic and I was able to figure out how to navigate the theme answers. Also a nice touch in the last across answer with ‘REI’ backwards in ‘Fiero’.

Getting Kia from ‘haik’ reminded me of the puzzle where the island ‘Sulpa’ was in the grid because it is ‘A Plus’ backwards. I think the puzzle title was Stress Test, and the theme entries hinted at answer, island, and backward. Unusual answers are often part of the meta solution.
JeanneC
Posts: 614
Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2020 11:25 am
Location: Florida

#298

Post by JeanneC »

Wow. I wasn’t even close but that is a super meta from a tough grid. Congrats to all who solved. I will continue to enjoy my morning coffee from my non WSJ mug. ☕️ 😁
“I cannot and will not cut my conscience to fit this year’s fashions”. Lillian Hellman
User avatar
yourpalsal
Posts: 177
Joined: Fri Feb 07, 2020 2:28 am

#299

Post by yourpalsal »

Jace54 wrote: Mon Jul 19, 2021 12:32 am It will be interesting to see the number of IBM submissions. After initially making no progress with the long answers, I looked at the ‘A’ in grid box 9 and the ‘T’ in 5 and saw ambit in 1-across with the IBM in reverse. But that seemed too simplistic and I was able to figure out how to navigate the theme answers. Also a nice touch in the last across answer with ‘REI’ backwards in ‘Fiero’.

Getting Kia from ‘haik’ reminded me of the puzzle where the island ‘Sulpa’ was in the grid because it is ‘A Plus’ backwards. I think the puzzle title was Stress Test, and the theme entries hinted at answer, island, and backward. Unusual answers are often part of the meta solution.
It will be interesting to see how many IBMs. That was my guess from just looking at the title before starting the grid. The key that opened the meta for me was seeing “cross” backward in the theme answers.
Homer Buckle
Posts: 254
Joined: Fri Dec 20, 2019 5:12 pm

#300

Post by Homer Buckle »

Well, I got the answer, but I totally disliked the puzzle. Why were the 9 to 5 letters from Nine to Five (VIFOT) not included in the solution? Also, in all my years of working, I've never known anyone to work such hours. I worked at a Fortune 100 company in St. Paul, MN. People worked basically 9 hours. I had some friends that worked 9 to 3; I generally worked from 8:30 to 5:30. No one worked 9 to 5, and I don't know anyone who had such short working hours.
Locked