MEOW #89: Turn The Corner

A weekly meta crossword on the forum started by member Josh (aka madhatter5). These puzzles are often very creative with solving mechanisms out of the norm and skewing towards the more challenging. Puzzles are posted every Wednesday, and the solution appears the following Tuesday.
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whimsy
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#21

Post by whimsy »

Capturecastlecouch.JPG
But the kitty's long gone.
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lbray53
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#22

Post by lbray53 »

Cat is out of the bag and has turned the corner.
My avatar proves that it is sometimes better to be lucky than good!
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ImOnToo
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#23

Post by ImOnToo »

Cat’s out of the bag!

You were a busy bee this week, Ben! Thanks for all of the puzzles!
Konnie
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ChrisKochmanski
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#24

Post by ChrisKochmanski »

The cat escaped the bag, got off the couch, and crossed the moat. I’ve named the cat Ben.
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benchen71
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#25

Post by benchen71 »

ChrisKochmanski wrote: Wed Aug 03, 2022 7:47 pm The cat escaped the bag, got off the couch, and crossed the moat. I’ve named the cat Ben.
I'd rather have a cat named after me than a rat. Thanks for nothing, Michael Jackson!
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta! :D
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benchen71
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#26

Post by benchen71 »

We've had an excellent first day freeing that pesky cat. Here's who successfully negotiated the meta spiral:

madhatter5 (tester)
Dow Jones
SJMcK
Schmeel
Cindy Weatherman
Meg
Tom Wilson
kymike
boharr
Ergcat
JM
Cindy Heisler
DrTom
Qmark
KayW
oldjudge
lbray53
JHSeeman
DIS
Carolyn
CPJohnson
Jeremy Smith
schmidzy
Gutman
rjy
SewYoung
ajk
DebbieC
Laura M
woozy
whimsy
Darth
ImOnToo
Johnny Luau
Kat
Tyrpmom
somylai
swagdude
ChrisKochmanski

Zounds! We're up to 39 already!!
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta! :D
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DrTom
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#27

Post by DrTom »

Apparently a lot of these cats are escaping in a MOATer boat! Ben has provided an interesting, fun, and entirely solvable, week so far. Now if the WSJ today carries his byline we will know that he has given up his PhD pursuit to be a full time X-worder!
NUDGES!I am always willing to give nudges IF ASKED; metas should be about fun, not frustration. PM me what you have done so far, because often you are closer than you think, and I will try to help you move along.
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Cap'n Rick
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#28

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Fun one, Ben!
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles! Also check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays"!
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Dplass
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#29

Post by Dplass »

After a nudge I have successfully (fill in the phrase here). TFTP!
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edestlin
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#30

Post by edestlin »

Cat's out of the bag. Thanks for the puzzle!
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benchen71
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#31

Post by benchen71 »

A solver update for you:

BobJas
THC
Capn Rick
HeadinHome
dplass
Ira Hanson
Puzzling Programmer
edestlin
Darrell

That's 48 so far, and we're still a little way off the nudges!
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta! :D
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BarbaraK
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#32

Post by BarbaraK »

The cat’s out.

Home from vacation. MMMM and WSJ done early. MGWCC week one. So extra puzzling time this weekend for some of these I don’t always get to.

Different and clever. Thanks!
If you want help with a meta, feel free to PM me. The more specific you are about what you have and what you want, the more likely I can help without spoiling.

(And if I help you win a mug, I’ll be especially delighted.)
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hoover
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#33

Post by hoover »

Kitten fell off the couch!
I don't have anything clever to say, but if I did, it would go here.
Eli
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ReB
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#34

Post by ReB »

The cat chewed its way out and at last sight seemed a bit dizzy.
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benchen71
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#35

Post by benchen71 »

Solver update before the nudges:

BarbaraK
hoover
ReB

which brings us to 51.
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta! :D
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benchen71
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#36

Post by benchen71 »

Nudges, in order of increasing blatancy:

1. I tried to make the clues as straight-forward as possible, so hopefully no one had trouble filling the grid, given that most of the letters were uncrossed.

2. Yes, that previous nudge was a hint. The only other hint you get is the puzzle title.

3. Look to the turns of the spiral path.

4. Work your way inward to read the meta answer.
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta! :D
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benchen71
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#37

Post by benchen71 »

5 more solvers:

markhr
LindaPRmaven
jbird
BrennerTJ
amy nelson

There'll be one final solver update, right before the answer reveal.
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta! :D
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benchen71
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#38

Post by benchen71 »

Just one more solver:

bereolos

for a total of 57. Answer imminent...
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta! :D
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benchen71
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#39

Post by benchen71 »

Here's the answer to "Turn The Corner":

Turn The Corner (solution).png

It turns out this phrase is not in common usage in the US. However, this is one of those situations where we Aussies, due to our linguistic laziness, decide not to keep pronouncing a long word!

Tossing and turning at night, I was thinking about sickness (there's been a lot of it going around recently!) In particular, I noted that when a sick person "turns the corner" it means they are now "on the improve". I pictured a grid with a labyrinth-like path where the letters at the corners as you moved into the center spelled the meta answer. Imagine my surprise when, the next day when I sat down to try it out, the phrase fit exactly into this simple spiral path. Very satisfying!

Thanks for having me, @madhatter5!
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta! :D
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KayW
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#40

Post by KayW »

Here’s what I found when I googled this new-to-me phrase:
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