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I can't just make up another space pun on the spot! I have to planet.

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1. Puzzle #66 answer: WAY TO GO

Correct entries: 48



Thanks to @BrennerTJ for the graphic!

Shortest explanation: As hinted at by the explanation of ABBR, there are seven thoroughfare abbreviations hidden in across entries in the grid (LN, CIR, DR, RTE, ST, AVE, CT). These are the only instances of these seven, and I tried to limit myself to the most common ones, though things like BR, IS, UN, and TER crept in (hence the qualifier). If we head (first letter) out on (above) each of these seven entries, we spell out WAY TO GO, the meta answer, fitting since roads are definitely a way to go! (Inspired by Route 66 - I hope you get your kicks on these puzzles!)

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2. Leaderboard:



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3. This is the third Saturday in August, and we have an...interesting Week 3 for you this time around. If anything, it will likely clock up to Week 3.5 (or maybe even an early Week 4, eep!). But don't let that daunt you - be an intrepid puzzle solver and see if you can crack this conundrum! Thanks to @oldjudge for initial testing and feedback!

(Note that the "calculus" comment is irrelevant and not meta-related; those PDF quips never are! Just some math humor, even though my calculus puns are a bit derivative. Also, yes, it says I edited 3 times. Just tidying up pieces of the post, and I like any edits to occur at a multiple of 5 minutes since I'm weird that way, haha.)

Good luck, and may all your solves be beautiful!

67. The Outer Limits

The answer to the meta, an 11-letter adjective illustrated by the grid, is what I hope you find this puzzle to be.

Deadline is Saturday, August 26 at 1 pm ET.

Good luck, and may all your solves be beautiful!

Mikey G

Really a great puzzle, Mikey--very creative.

Fantastic puzzle, Mikey - thanks!

Super clever, Mikey! And yes, I did find this puzzle to be [answer redacted].

Amazing construction!

Got it. Thanks for the puzzle, Mikey.

Meg wrote: ↑Sat Aug 19, 2023 3:08 pm Amazing construction!

This was probably one of the metas I've had the most fun creating!

Also, we've got 12 solvers so far, so I can breathe a sigh of relief it isn't impossible!

I needed help, but still very much enjoyed solving.

That was MikeyGREAT!!

Solved with a nudge. Very enjoyable. Thanks, Mikey!

I've noticed something but I'm still thinking about what to do with it...

benchen71 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 19, 2023 10:17 pm I've noticed something but I'm still thinking about what to do with it...

Me too! I've definitely found step 1.

Well, that's it. I'm officially 0 for 7 this week.

Why is it that when you are most frustrated and need a win for a slight ego burst you are least likely to get? (Oh, don't actually answer that. It was rhetorical).

EDIT:

Okay, a night's rest and quit worrying about the dang WSJ (not going to get... I'm at peace with that) and and MGWCC (I ... well, I did something so it is no longer on my mind) and ... I can make sense of the metanism.... Now... it's word-play time. Don't have it but.... STEP 1: is truly an outstanding work of art.

Solved, with encouragement and help from @MikeyG. A great puzzle!

Solved, with a gentle nudge. Very clever puzzle!

I got it. It took me a while to make sense of what I was seeing. Thanks for the puzzle - good one!

There it is, darn thing! Got it! :mrgreen:

Got it, but needed a couple of nudges from a very patient Muggle. Nice one, Mikey!

I do see a thing but I don't think I'm going to come up with the right 11-letter adjective to describe it!

We have 25 solvers for this slightly harder-than-usual Week 3, and that's fine with me! But let's see if a couple of Monday nudges gets some people over the finish line!

1. There's a lot that's obviously "weird" about this grid, including two-letter entries, repeat words, and some very subpar fill. There's a reason for that, especially since the grid itself looks like it'd be pretty easy to fill!

2. Other titles floated around for this meta were "We're Surrounded!," "I Get Around," and "Don't Fence Me In!"

3. The meta is visual, so we have to realize something that's going on with the grid, and there is a piece of the 11-letter adjective that you might get first before getting the full thing.

Still keeping a bit of it deliberately opaque, but thanks so much for solving!

This was a bit of a slog for me, and even after getting the meta I needed a shove over the line. (Thankyou, @benchen71!) Looking forward to seeing the colourful solution graphic! Thanks Mikey! Now…Back to sleep!