"In Character" - February 19, 2021

[Hidden in 3D]

On shore! I was in the middle of a project when the puzzle dropped, so I never got around to it earlier. Couldn't get back to sleep after dreaming I was a character in "Halt and Catch Fire" and decided to get up and start the grid. Figured out the meta quickly, and now that good ol' Sleepytime tea is kicking in, so I'm off to dreamland once again.

Mark and I just started Season 2 of "Halt and Catch Fire." It is wonderful! Which character were you?

Hahahaha! Oh, Wendy, you make me laugh! There are only two possible scenarios where I remember any details from my dreams:
1.) I wake myself just enough to immediately write down a few of those details using the pen and paper that I keep in the top drawer of my nightstand just for this purpose. (This, in itself, is contingent on two factors: a] the pen that is supposed to be in said drawer has not walked to another location and b] the details that I jot are not total gibberish when I look at them in the morning light.)
2.) The dream occurs shortly before I get out of bed in the morning to start my day and I immediately tell it to my husband before I do anything else.

Since neither of those two things occurred, I'm afraid I have no idea I no idea which character I was, or even if I was some strange bystander watching all the action. I won't mention my location, which I do remember, because we are now on Season 4 and I don't want to inadvertently tell you about something you will soon be viewing!

[Jackie88]

On shore!

[Rad26]

Ashore.

[Wendy Walker]

TPS, you are the reason we started watching Halt -- so thank you! Mark loves the hardware and gaming storylines, and the late 1970s/early 80s music and decor are a total nostalgia-fest for me. The Sopranos, Boardwalk Empire, and Six Feet Under are high on my list; I really wanted to like Breaking Bad and Peaky Blinders but just couldn't.

You are welcome - I do my best Breaking Bad and The Wire are pretty dark shows so I can get why they might not be in some people’s wheelhouse - although I feel like if you could handle and enjoyed The Sopranos then most people should be able to do BB & The Wire. I watched Boardwalk Empire and felt it was ok - not top 10 for me. I really liked Six Feet Under - best end to a show ever - I was literally fighting back tears - it’s probably a top 10 show for me. I have not watched Peaky Blinders - it’s been recommended but I haven’t felt the urge to commit to it yet.

A lot of my friends rave about BB, but I was a caregiver for a friend who died of lung cancer ... so I just had too much baggage to put aside! "Peaky Blinders" is riveting but incredibly violent -- I know, that's an oxymoron coming from a "Sopranos" fan, isn't it. The "Six Feet Under" finale was amazing: Time. Just. Stopped.

[Jaclyn]

Joining the party on shore. Honestly, my pandemic brain is appreciating a few simpler weeks...

[SewYoung]

Ashore! Again, I wait until Friday mornings to start and that's when the puzzle is loaded on the WSJ iPad app anyway. Makes Fridays even more enjoyable!

I see posts saying the construction was elegant. Not sure I am tracking. As a newer solver of the WSJ Thursday and Friday puzzles (I am now addicted!), I would love to have a conversation with folks about your perspectives. February has been a good training ground as I now go back and work through the 2020 Friday puzzles. Feel free to message me if you want to have the conversation. Thanks!

Join us on the Tuesday evening Zoom meeting. It happens at 6:30 Central / 7:30 Eastern time. A link to the meeting can be found on the "Come Aboard" page under FAQ Community/Solving Resources topic as "YourPalSal's Muggle Meetup".

[Kris Zacharias]

On shore

[HunterX]

On shore.

Wait... I tipped the cabana boy QUITE well to ensure he set up a well appointed and well equipped cabana for me, with a sunset view over the bluest part of the ocean, just above high-tide mark, and a ready supply of appropriately chilled Vinho Verde. Yet where is he? Too busy running around serving umbrella-drinks to the ladies, I see? And there's no room for my cabana? He left me a sandy Smurf towel to sit on!?! WELL I NEVER!!! (Okay, maybe once in the 70's...)

Fine... I'll just get a burger and one of those $12 bottles of wine that's been "aged" in bourbon barrels to give it more kick. If I can't live in style, at least I can live in a blissful stupor.

[Colin]

Ashore....

Quick Friday finish,
(Ev’ry thing is relative)
Over chips and fish!

[Kris Zacharias]

One of my faves! On shore!

I’ve enjoyed your raccoon photos. Recently my daughter, who lives in Colorado, saw a pair of raccoons on the roof of her house. Her husband rigged a camera and they discovered that the animals were taking refuge in an unused flue. A neighbor, who works for a company that removes nuisance animals, told her that raccoons have multiple homes. The raccoons soon left the roof and the chimney flue was capped.

[Tom Shea]

Crossword solving was my only mechanism in getting this one.

On shore. Although I don't see Deborah Kerr anywhere.

It's Aloha Friday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNIRvyBbgzA

[Scott Lindholm]

Done and done. Pretty sure this is the first time I've ever solved four in a row, which makes it very fortuitous the daughter's boyfriend's gift of a beer of the month subscription shows up tomorrow.

[LadyBird]

Crossword solving was my only mechanism in getting this one.

On shore. Although I don't see Deborah Kerr anywhere.

20190124_111954r.jpg


It's Aloha Friday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNIRvyBbgzA

We were looking down on that beach 2 years ago! Sure beats looking at the 3 1/2 feet of snow in our backyard right now.

[meowmiao71]

If there were fire codes for beaches, this one would be shut down! I think this is the quickest I've ever solved the meta. Very cute mechanism.

[hcbirker]

Ashore! Again, I wait until Friday mornings to start and that's when the puzzle is loaded on the WSJ iPad app anyway. Makes Fridays even more enjoyable!

I see posts saying the construction was elegant. Not sure I am tracking. As a newer solver of the WSJ Thursday and Friday puzzles (I am now addicted!), I would love to have a conversation with folks about your perspectives. February has been a good training ground as I now go back and work through the 2020 Friday puzzles. Feel free to message me if you want to have the conversation. Thanks!

Join us on the Tuesday evening Zoom meeting. It happens at 6:30 Central / 7:30 Eastern time. A link to the meeting can be found on the "Come Aboard" page under FAQ Community/Solving Resources topic as "YourPalSal's Muggle Meetup".

And the meeting password is “muggle”. We have a blast. And it’s so fun meeting new muggles!

[Tom Shea]

Crossword solving was my only mechanism in getting this one.

On shore. Although I don't see Deborah Kerr anywhere.

20190124_111954r.jpg


It's Aloha Friday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNIRvyBbgzA

We were looking down on that beach 2 years ago! Sure beats looking at the 3 1/2 feet of snow in our backyard right now.

This is the house in VT earlier today. They're predicting it will get above freezing sometime next week.

We're glad we're not there right now.

[Alvibu67]

Ashore! This one jumped out at me right away. What to do with the rest of my weekend now!?

[Meg]

On shore.

Wait... I tipped the cabana boy QUITE well to ensure he set up a well appointed and well equipped cabana for me, with a sunset view over the bluest part of the ocean, just above high-tide mark, and a ready supply of appropriately chilled Vinho Verde. Yet where is he? Too busy running around serving umbrella-drinks to the ladies, I see? And there's no room for my cabana? He left me a sandy Smurf towel to sit on!?! WELL I NEVER!!! (Okay, maybe once in the 70's...)

Fine... I'll just get a burger and one of those $12 bottles of wine that's been "aged" in bourbon barrels to give it more kick. If I can't live in style, at least I can live in a blissful stupor.

Well, now I know what happened to my Smurf towel! The cabana boy freaks out a bit in chilly weather. And I recommend tipping him AFTER he sets up your well-appointed hut.

[TPS]

A lot of my friends rave about BB, but I was a caregiver for a friend who died of lung cancer.

Fair enough - my last GF had a sister with a meth issue and she just couldn’t watch BB because it hit too close to home.

[Scraps]

I think this is a first for me: I got the meta before I finished the grid! Thanks to the clue from George Eliot. Now, that's a novel I have not read ...

I've read it.

It's highly regarded, more highly now than when published, but it never clicked for me.

Eliot deals with a lot of important subjects, but they are obvious, conventional ones, and she doesn't say much interesting about them.

The novel is praised for its many distinct characters, but I don't find many of them credible or their motivations interesting. When you compare xxxxxxxxxxx to Bleak House, similarly edited novels edited, edited out does not measure up to Esther Summerson as a compelling female protagonist.

Uh... Some of us don't even start the puzzle until Friday evening. None of this is a spoiler, I hope? Yes? I mean, you're citing a particular time period and "naming names"...

You're kidding, right?

The clue gave the name of an author who wrote only seven novels, two of which have 11-letter titles, and asked you to pick one. What was left for me to give away?

I didn't name anything that is in the puzzle or related to the meta answer. If the character name means anything to you, the title was already obvious. If it didn't, the clue is already so Google-able that the character name and author's era aren't needed to help you get there.

EDIT: I just realized you hadn't seen the puzzle and really didn't know I wasn't giving anything away. But you do kid a lot, so I thought maybe you were. Anyway, I see that you have solved the puzzle, and I hope you agree I was of no help at all.