"Past and Present" - December 24, 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.
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Colin
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#361

Post by Colin »

Bob cruise director wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 1:59 pm
Bob cruise director wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 7:43 am
Colin wrote: Sun Dec 27, 2020 11:30 pm
I had same thing back in the summer with my bathroom faucets. In the end, it was easier to disconnect the plumbing (h/c and waste), lift out the sink (with faucets) after cutting the silicone seal and then saw through the nuts on the workbench. Saved a few bandaids on my head too!
I watched a couple of videos and laughed. First video the water shutoffs actually worked which they never do. And the nut twisted off by hand. HA

Second The guy drilled out the nut from below.
The plumber is coming on Wednesday. I want to see how he attacks the problem
Oh boy! I hope it doesn’t turn into this type of week for you, Bob...
https://open.spotify.com/track/6KGSH77A ... zVW8utuynQ
... the relevant song starts about 2 mins in, after some very old British humor!
One world. One planet. One future.
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ReB
Posts: 667
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Location: East Tennessee

#362

Post by ReB »

After rebooting my brain with Bob's "Hints for Solving Meta Contests" and then concluding that the key hint for locating the meta answer letters (i.e. Matt's present to us) was "UNDER THE TREE", I noticed OAK and then ELM a little ways down. For confirmation, I searched for the next three-letter tree name that came to my mind, which was FIR, and after spotting that one, I went down until I noticed ASH - and that was gin.

The biggest distraction for me was the use of PRESENT in both the title and four clues. (PAST though was a bust, so I didn't go very far down that rabbit trail.)

But there was one nice Christmas touch associated with that distraction - the combination of 36A and 33D (two of the "present" clues) formed a little cross (or perhaps star) in the middle of the puzzle, which could also be seen as an ornament at the top of a "Christmas tree" (if you look at the whole grid as a helicopter view of a single tree sloping up from the base to an apex).
eisense
Posts: 23
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 11:59 am

#363

Post by eisense »

HunterX wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 1:21 pm
pddigi wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 8:36 am I posted in last week’s thread, but for anyone who cares: I had posted about modern technology that retained elements of forerunner technology (such as the 9-minute snooze interval on iPhone). I knew there was a word for it but couldn’t remember it. I came across it while reading an article online: skeuomorphism

The Wikipedia entry spends time on the topic as it involves Apple:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skeuomorph
Interesting. The word I was thinking of when you originally posted was "Steampunk." And although the article doesn't mention it, I see it mentions "Retrofuturism" in the Design section. And Steampunk is a type of retrofuturism. So it seems steampunk is a subset of skeuomorphism.

Now if someone could please tell me how to untie the knot in my tongue....
Somewhat related is "retronym" coined by William Safire to capture the class of new names one had to give to items that had been replaced by technology advances. The analog watch is the classic example.
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LadyBird
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#364

Post by LadyBird »

ReB wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 2:45 pm But there was one nice Christmas touch associated with that distraction - the combination of 36A and 33D (two of the "present" clues) formed a little cross (or perhaps star) in the middle of the puzzle, which could also be seen as an ornament at the top of a "Christmas tree" (if you look at the whole grid as a helicopter view of a single tree sloping up from the base to an apex).
I noticed that little cross in the middle as well. But I thought of it as ribbons crossing a present. So another rabbit hole was trying to follow those ribbons.
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HunterX
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Location: Philadelphia, PA

#365

Post by HunterX »

eisense wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 3:04 pm
HunterX wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 1:21 pm
pddigi wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 8:36 am I posted in last week’s thread, but for anyone who cares: I had posted about modern technology that retained elements of forerunner technology (such as the 9-minute snooze interval on iPhone). I knew there was a word for it but couldn’t remember it. I came across it while reading an article online: skeuomorphism

The Wikipedia entry spends time on the topic as it involves Apple:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skeuomorph
Interesting. The word I was thinking of when you originally posted was "Steampunk." And although the article doesn't mention it, I see it mentions "Retrofuturism" in the Design section. And Steampunk is a type of retrofuturism. So it seems steampunk is a subset of skeuomorphism.

Now if someone could please tell me how to untie the knot in my tongue....
Somewhat related is "retronym" coined by William Safire to capture the class of new names one had to give to items that had been replaced by technology advances. The analog watch is the classic example.
Ah. Well I then have a steampunk-smartwatch, a retronym I just created as my contribution to the world of skeuomorphs. I treated myself to a present this month--a smartwatch, after refusing for years, and sticking by my old-fashioned solar atomic-clock-receiving watches. (The latter having killed all the batteries in my ancient battery-powered watches.) I was finally satisfied sufficiently with a new arrival on the smartwatch scene, and sufficiently bored of my last pandemic-toy. Of the many watch faces I've downloaded for it, my favorites have (simulated) tourbillons and/or are a (simulated) skeleton watch.
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Commodore
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#366

Post by Commodore »

Colin wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 2:45 pm
Bob cruise director wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 1:59 pm
Bob cruise director wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 7:43 am

I watched a couple of videos and laughed. First video the water shutoffs actually worked which they never do. And the nut twisted off by hand. HA

Second The guy drilled out the nut from below.
The plumber is coming on Wednesday. I want to see how he attacks the problem
Oh boy! I hope it doesn’t turn into this type of week for you, Bob...
https://open.spotify.com/track/6KGSH77A ... zVW8utuynQ
... the relevant song starts about 2 mins in, after some very old British humor!
Mister Colin, you have sent me down an entirely different and enjoyable rabbit hole. Where did you find these fellows? They are brilliant. The British version of Tom Lehrer and Ogden Nash. Gnow, I cannot get their GNU song out of my head. Happy Gnu Year!
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mheberlingx100
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#367

Post by mheberlingx100 »

Has the winner of the mug been announced?
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LadyBird
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#368

Post by LadyBird »

mheberlingx100 wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 2:20 pm Has the winner of the mug been announced?
I keep hopefully checking my junk email holder!
Nlobb
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Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 6:46 pm

#369

Post by Nlobb »

Me too!!!
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Prozach
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Location: Columbus, OH

#370

Post by Prozach »

The easter egg for me was the word "ETZ" as part of GETZ in NE. Well, the Word ETZ means TREE in Hebrew. Isn't that something?
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Joe Ross
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#371

Post by Joe Ross »

If you're not on ZOOM, you're missing a dissertation on bladder capacities, mechanics, & health.
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!
Dplass
Posts: 1739
Joined: Sat Dec 28, 2019 10:09 am

#372

Post by Dplass »

Joe Ross wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:06 pm If you're not on ZOOM, you're missing a dissertation on bladder capacities, mechanics, & health.
LOL, kind of glad I chickened out at the last second.
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Colin
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Joined: Sat Apr 13, 2019 11:57 pm

#373

Post by Colin »

Commodore wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 2:19 pm
Colin wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 2:45 pm
Bob cruise director wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 1:59 pm
The plumber is coming on Wednesday. I want to see how he attacks the problem
Oh boy! I hope it doesn’t turn into this type of week for you, Bob...
https://open.spotify.com/track/6KGSH77A ... zVW8utuynQ
... the relevant song starts about 2 mins in, after some very old British humor!
Mister Colin, you have sent me down an entirely different and enjoyable rabbit hole. Where did you find these fellows? They are brilliant. The British version of Tom Lehrer and Ogden Nash. Gnow, I cannot get their GNU song out of my head. Happy Gnu Year!
Back in England, my parents, brother and I would listen to the Family Favorites show on BBC radio every Sunday lunch-time. Flanders and Swann were regular requests and The Gasman Cometh song is one that later got merged with Led Zeppelin, Beatles, etc in my eclectic music memory. Anyway, it’s great that you enjoyed it - who’d have gnown!
Last edited by Colin on Wed Dec 30, 2020 11:01 am, edited 1 time in total.
One world. One planet. One future.
Bill Bovard
Posts: 49
Joined: Mon Dec 23, 2019 12:18 am
Location: Pasadena, CA

#374

Post by Bill Bovard »

Bob cruise director wrote: Sun Dec 27, 2020 2:12 pm A belated Sunday report as I was attempting to replace my daughter's kitchen sink faucet - unsuccessful as that nut that holds it on was rusted forever and needs someone with a sawsall to cut the faucet off.

On a positive note, we have several new muggles including Arthur Q. Wells, Guy Wyo and collegecrossworders (not sure which college). we welcome all of them.

We have 7 now keeping Isaac company and 183 on the shore

New to the shore since yesterday are
cbarbee002 (I think)
and copperriver

Making their way to the shore are
EVJ
maprasad
Arthur
Debbie
Colin
Amanda Hugginkiss
Nlobb
phofer
Plymouth Rock
Ann
Guy Wyo
Brian M (who was there but forgot to post :-(
Cosmo
ADS
Crest
Jarrod
horsesense
collegecroworders (by the way how many of you are there and what will you do if you win the mug)
Fishoutowater - who had one of the better lines after getting a nudge
flamingbear
Lyman
KscX
norrin2
Bic Mac
Henry Paul
and Susie G

Good luck to all winning the mug
Woo-hoo, you have an excuse to buy a sawzall!
Arthur Q. Welles
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Dec 23, 2020 10:25 am
Location: Concord, MA

#375

Post by Arthur Q. Welles »

Bob cruise director wrote: Sat Dec 26, 2020 2:06 pm
Arthur Q. Welles wrote: Sat Dec 26, 2020 12:00 pm Ashore! Give me a Guinness.
Another close neighbor. Welcome to the clan. Always great to have more muggles.

I live in Littleton and we have several others in close proximity.
Nice to know I have some neighbors here on the forum. Glad to have found this community, I've been doing puzzles for 30 years but I've only recently been introduced to metas.
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Joe Ross
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Location: Cincinnati

#376

Post by Joe Ross »

Bill Bovard wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 11:50 pm
Bob cruise director wrote: Sun Dec 27, 2020 2:12 pm A belated Sunday report as I was attempting to replace my daughter's kitchen sink faucet - unsuccessful as that nut that holds it on was rusted forever and needs someone with a sawsall to cut the faucet off
Woo-hoo, you have an excuse to buy a sawzall!
I propose something from the KNUCKLE-BUSTER© WRISTSNAP® 2020 line by DeWALT.

Image
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!
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DrTom
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Joined: Sat Apr 20, 2019 6:46 pm
Location: Jacksonville, FL

#377

Post by DrTom »

Joe Ross wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:06 pm If you're not on ZOOM, you're missing a dissertation on bladder capacities, mechanics, & health.
We put the P in Public Forum!! That is our cystem and scope of influence and your in trouble if you don't sphinc that's true.

EDIT: I forgot to say, ureter with us or against us!
Last edited by DrTom on Wed Dec 30, 2020 9:44 am, edited 1 time in total.
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!
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DrTom
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#378

Post by DrTom »

Joe Ross wrote: Wed Dec 30, 2020 7:26 am
Bill Bovard wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 11:50 pm
Bob cruise director wrote: Sun Dec 27, 2020 2:12 pm A belated Sunday report as I was attempting to replace my daughter's kitchen sink faucet - unsuccessful as that nut that holds it on was rusted forever and needs someone with a sawsall to cut the faucet off
Woo-hoo, you have an excuse to buy a sawzall!
I propose something from the KNUCKLE-BUSTER© WRISTSNAP® 2020 line by DeWALT.

Image
Wow, whatever happened to the good old blowtorch. Great for loosening up rusted nuts and for giving one a reason to replace the entire wooden cabinet the sink is in! Also give the room that pleasant fireplace smell.....
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!
MikeMillerwsj
Posts: 286
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 2:46 pm

#379

Post by MikeMillerwsj »

Belatedly and briefly catching up here, with apologies for the holiday-week delay. (Always a delightful surprise to see the unexpected directions this discussion takes... plumbing techniques is a new one.)

A big turnout and an unusually high success rate: 1813 entries, 95% correct. One more Thursday contest right around the corner for the holidays. Congrats to this week's winner, Adam Beerman of Somerville, MA. And a safe, happy, and mug-filled 2021 to all!
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DrTom
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Location: Jacksonville, FL

#380

Post by DrTom »

MikeMillerwsj wrote: Wed Dec 30, 2020 9:20 am Belatedly and briefly catching up here, with apologies for the holiday-week delay. (Always a delightful surprise to see the unexpected directions this discussion takes... plumbing techniques is a new one.)

A big turnout and an unusually high success rate: 1813 entries, 95% correct. One more Thursday contest right around the corner for the holidays. Congrats to this week's winner, Adam Beerman of Somerville, MA. And a safe, happy, and mug-filled 2021 to all!
But Mike, when we cover "plumbing" we do it for several different iterations of the art! Of course you HAVE to be on the Zoom call for that. :D
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!
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