Originally I thought CDs as others did, but that wasn't going to pan out. Then I thought of a diamond shape but that didn't pan out. Finally, late Sunday I looked closer at the themers and noticed the H-P connection and got STNY. I went back to 40A and figured the O came from there and submitted STONY. I also noticed there was actually a H-PE connection with three of the four themers, but not John Paul. I also saw Hops. Did I go back to my diamond shape idea and see HOPE around the answer letters? Nope, but floated safely to shore anyway. This is why I suck at chess.
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 10:40 am
by Larrry
femullen wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 9:00 am
Also, is the following a spoiler or just part of solving technique? I wrote to the northern (smarter) half of Equipe Canuck on Friday (before she sailed away and left me marooned),
"I'm going to guess that the meta is in the grid this week, not in the clues, or at least not mainly in the clues. The reason is that the puzzle maker and editor are two different people: Matt Gaffney would then be primarily responsible for the grid, while Mike Shenk would be primarily responsible for the clues."
This turned out to be correct. But like every other solving aid, it can't be a general rule, more a rule of thumb.
I dont think this is always true - many constructors include clues with their puzzle and I thought in the Zoom Mike Shenk said he very lightly edits Matt Gaffney's clues. And I remember at least one example where Gaffney clues were part of the mechanism - where you needed to read the numbers of the clue as part of the clue.
DannyWalter wrote: ↑Sun Aug 15, 2021 9:58 pm
I REALLY want to know what that spoiler was. . .
The original comment was “You would have to have been high to miss this one!! LOL.” To be honest, that comment went over my head and I didn’t think much of it. Another poster also seemed to miss what fuggedaboudit was going for and commented “that’s harsh.” Fuggedaboudit replied to this poster, “I'm sorry. I should have said "really really high" LOL”.
By doubling down, fuggedaboudit made obvious he was intentionally hinting at the meta answer (i.e., being high = “stoned”). This forum literally has only one rule: do not post answers or hints before the deadline. Oblique references to the meta answer are always removed when they are clearly intentional.
This had nothing do to with the “use of humor,” the “completely uncontroversial subject matter” or the “staid views of the complainer(s) or moderator” (brother, if you only knew…). It simply broke the only rule we have.
Some spoilers are intentional and some are accidental. We try to remove them all to preserve the purest solving experience for everyone. People often question why their post was removed and they sometimes disagree with the decision. If this happens to you, you can always send me a PM, and I will be happy to discuss it. Or you can launch a public diatribe, but then you should really ask yourself who the “uptight” one is.
So, I saw the original posts, but I didn't think "stoned". I thought he was referencing "High Hopes", which would also be a spoiler (albeit a bit milder than what he intended). All of which just goes to show you 2 things: a) wow, I'm old; and b) my failure to see the obvious connection is probably why I struggle with some of the more straightforward metas. On this one, I fixated on the "E" and "A" on either side of "DIAMOND", thinking that the word DIAMOND was encased between an "E" and an "A", and that somehow had to be the mechanism. Searched for days for a way to make that work. Finally, sent up a flare to Meg, who set me on the right track (she was very patient with my cluelessness). One final thought -- while I've only been a part of this community for less than a year, I have found the people on this forum to be among the most uniformly non-judgy folks I have ever encountered online, so the thought that the prior post was removed because of Brian's "staid" reaction to "controversial subject matter" strikes me as completely laughable. I mean, good lord -- half the jokes on this forum are about obtaining copious amounts of alcoholic beverages from Meg's cabana boy. Prudishness does not seem to be a hallmark of this group. In any event, on to Thursday!
I made both inferences. Noting it was a double spoiler. Somewhere along the way, there was a comment referencing a "not goat", i.e., the ram in that song. Fortunately no one mentioned ants or rubber trees.
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 10:47 am
by BrianMac
Bird Lives wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 10:35 am
I only wish that Brian would notify the author when he deletes a post, but that's just because my memory is so unreliable that I have at least once found myself thinking "I thought i posted that, but now I don't see it. Did I decide not to post it, or did Brian remove it?"
That's a fair comment. I did make a point to notify people in the beginning, mostly because I felt bad about ever editing someone else's content. But laziness quickly got the better of me in that regard. I will make an effort to get back in that habit.
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 10:55 am
by whimsy
MatthewL wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 10:05 am
I thought he was referencing "High Hopes"
Yup. Silly, naive (and oh so innocent me. ) The only spoilerish connection I could make was this --
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 10:58 am
by cbarbee002
Was uber busy (no, not driving) all week through Sunday, and literally never got past filling the grid. I know that the super-solvers had the meta before getting the grid done, but at 11-something last night when I completed the grid I just didn't have it in me to continue (well, I DID have some Sierra Nevada's in me, which may explain some things). My immediate reaction to the title was CD cases, as others have mentioned. I then thought about the Richard Jewell matter (Atlanta), but quickly discounted that due to different spelling. I then thought about how good that pillow might feel . . . zzzzzz.
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 11:28 am
by BarbaraK
femullen wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 9:36 am
Ok, my last excuse for the week:
~~~
Your honor, I rise to my hind legs to object that the adjective in question is not of five letters but rather of six.
For it is well known throughout the land, across the fruited plain, and from sea to shining sea, that the word describing things that are full of small rocks is spelled STONEY.
In public evidence of this, allow me to remind your honor that just up the road from this courthouse, plummeting from the front range of the Alleghenies and caroming down its gulley to the Shenandoah, runs that famous trout fishery called STONEY Creek (https://www.murraysflyshop.com/pages/fl ... oney-creek), which, though shamefully misspelled on Googlemaps, is, has been, and always will be spelled STONEY.
Thus, for the preservation of justice, for the protection of the common law, and for the promulgation of sound orthography, my grieviously oppressed client, femullen, desires and demands a replay.
Ok, since you argue so persuasively, you will be granted another chance to play. Thursday, 4PM, on the WSJ site. See you on shore!
By the time I saw it, the spoiler thread looked like the above, with just a bunch of "spoiler removed" text. I was sooo tempted to continue the nesting by quote-replying with my own literal "[spoiler removed]" block just to confuse people.
Hey, I just noticed that bbcode removes any quotes that are more than 3 quotes deep. Inside the mntlblok block above should be another:
fuggedabowdit wrote: ↑Sun Aug 15, 2021 2:40 pm
Ashore, just looked at the meta. [spoiler removed]
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 12:03 pm
by hoover
femullen wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 9:36 am
Ok, my last excuse for the week:
~~~
Your honor, I rise to my hind legs to object that the adjective in question is not of five letters but rather of six.
For it is well known throughout the land, across the fruited plain, and from sea to shining sea, that the word describing things that are full of small rocks is spelled STONEY.
In public evidence of this, allow me to remind your honor that just up the road from this courthouse, plummeting from the front range of the Alleghenies and caroming down its gulley to the Shenandoah, runs that famous trout fishery called STONEY Creek (https://www.murraysflyshop.com/pages/fl ... oney-creek), which, though shamefully misspelled on Googlemaps, is, has been, and always will be spelled STONEY.
Thus, for the preservation of justice, for the protection of the common law, and for the promulgation of sound orthography, my grieviously oppressed client, femullen, desires and demands a replay.
That looks like a place my late father probably visited more than once. Indeed, "Murray's Fly Shop" has a familiar ring to it. The URL appears to have an S on it, though, as it discusses two Stoney Creeks, the Big and the Little: https://www.murraysflyshop.com/pages/fl ... ney-creeks
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 12:16 pm
by KayW
BrennerTJ wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 9:47 am
An exciting start to the week! - I received email from Mike Miller that my "correct solution was selected randomly from 1,250 entries" ... woot!
BrennerTJ wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 9:47 am
An exciting start to the week! - I received email from Mike Miller that my "correct solution was selected randomly from 1,250 entries" ... woot!
Woohoo!! Congratulations @BrennerTJ!
Sookie sookie now! Ain’t we fancy? Check my new avatar. Thanks Bob! Congrats TJ!
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 12:50 pm
by Meg
BrennerTJ wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 9:47 am
An exciting start to the week! - I received email from Mike Miller that my "correct solution was selected randomly from 1,250 entries" ... woot!
BrennerTJ wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 9:47 am
An exciting start to the week! - I received email from Mike Miller that my "correct solution was selected randomly from 1,250 entries" ... woot!
Yay!!! A big congratulations to you!!
When a Muggle wins, its a win for all Muggledom! Hoo-ray!
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 12:58 pm
by flyingMoose
Unapologetically taken from the post on the Crossword Fiend site:
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 1:12 pm
by Commodore
No beach landing. Crashed on rocky cliffs at MEDIA GOES 'ERE island.
Mending spars. Raising sails again on Thursday.
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 1:27 pm
by technohumanistteach
First time poster. I solved for STONY but just by paying attention to the H-P sandwich. There is such a thing as HP (High Performance) diamonds, so that was my logic.
Bird Lives wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 10:35 am
I only wish that Brian would notify the author when he deletes a post, but that's just because my memory is so unreliable that I have at least once found myself thinking "I thought i posted that, but now I don't see it. Did I decide not to post it, or did Brian remove it?"
That's a fair comment. I did make a point to notify people in the beginning, mostly because I felt bad about ever editing someone else's content. But laziness quickly got the better of me in that regard. I will make an effort to get back in that habit.
I also edit, redact, & delete posts. I try to follow Brian's guidance to "change as little as possible, but what is necessary." I also see the value in notifying users & promise to do so, going forward. If you've had it happen & feel it's a negative experience for you, it's understandable & I'm likely to be the one responsible. In any case, always feel free to PM me with a question or complaint & I'll do what I can.
If I may, I will add another rule to the main rule of no spoilers: Anything that will likely cause dissension will be deleted or redacted, period. There are any number of issues that fall into this category, but expressing political views, in particular, will not be tolerated, whether wrapped in a joke or any other rhetoric. This corner of the internet is somewhat unique in that it exists without trolling and divisiveness (beyond the use of the Oxford comma or the em dash versus the en dash). I'll do whatever it takes to keep it this way.
Lastly, on occasion I will spot bad coding or a misspeeling in a post and correct them without comment (unless it's a purposeful misspeeling). I hope everyone is okay with that.
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 1:55 pm
by hoover
Joe Ross wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 1:43 pm
If I may, I will add another rule to the main rule of no spoilers: Anything that will likely cause dissension will be deleted or redacted, period. There are any number of issues that fall into this category, but expressing political views, in particular, will not be tolerated, whether wrapped in a joke or any other rhetoric. This corner of the internet is somewhat unique in that it exists without trolling and divisiveness (beyond the use of the Oxford comma or the em dash versus the en dash). I'll do whatever it takes to keep it this way.
Please clarify your position on the Oxford comma so I know whether to smugly agree or to work myself into a seething rage.
(Hmm... what would English be like if it allowed not only the construction "whether to X or to Y" but also "to whether X or Y," via the distributive property?)
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 2:33 pm
by RobM
I didn't get it. I got the idea of a five-letter diamond pattern, but I kept trying to find 4-letter gemstones (ruby? onyx? opal? jade?) or maybe 5-letters (pearl? beryl?) in the grid, and I got nowhere. Didn't occur to me to look for hope.
Also tried to figure out if there was significance to the missing I after John Paul.
Re: " Jewel Case " August 13, 2021
Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2021 2:33 pm
by pookie
MaineMarge wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:36 am
With all the sports related words in the grid, I thought of taking a pass on this meta, but decided to fumble my way through it. Not long after I saw the H&P in four long themers, my eye saw the O&E above and below with a letter encased inside the diamond. A quick search found the missing 5th letter in HOPS.
We’d seen this visual method in the meta about directions, where the letters NSEW enclosed the answer letters.
What better time to show you Isaac’s hops vine in the stern garden (just like mine!)
42B719F7-8DF8-4F58-86DA-F8E422D20652.jpeg
Enlarge to see the individual hops. Cute! In a few weeks I’ll cut off some of the bines to make interesting dried arrangements. Maybe have a good Stone IPA while doing so.
) The only spoilerish connection I could make was this --
Congratulations 
