XWord Muggles Forum

"Give me a meta long enough and a full day to solve and I will move the cat out of the bag..."

Drat, just as you feared, I'm back! I came up with today's puzzle after solving another meta I first tried to solve using the technique here. It did not work of course, "But it could", said I.

As stated in the prompt, the answer is what you might receive if you don't solve the meta, but I am sure most of you will. Though I'd put this as a solid Calico, maybe a Persian, I know some of you are going to see this immediately. I won't say who because that would probably tip it too much.

Still, it should be challenging enough that you raise a little sweat while you are trying for the prise (props to Mr. Gaffney for that lovely pun).

I want to thank @Al Sisti and @whimsy for test solving and helping me clean this up, @Joe Ross for help in getting the puzzle posted and of course all our moderators who keep the site running smoothly.

As is the norm, nudges Friday and reveal next Tuesday.

Not As Easy As They Say
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Whee!

Cat's run away.

(I can't believe you did this.)

Cat debagged!

woozy wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 2:41 am Whee!

Cat's run away.

(I can't believe you did this.)

Well I hope that is "I can't believe you did this" in an awe and wonderment context as opposed to a "you sold the cow for BEANS" situation (because we all know the second one was a giant mistake...)

This was a lovely solve! Thanks, Dr. T. The cat is licking Dorito dust off his paws.

Cat is free. Thanks, DrTom.

Cat-less bag.

Very nice! Thanks, Doc!

Love it! Time for an early holiday celebration?

schmidzy wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 11:23 am Love it! Time for an early holiday celebration?

But June 28th is still several months away!

Free! Thank you!

Cat has been desacked, thanks to the tiniest of nudges to correct my focus a bit. Thanks for the puzzle, Tom!

OH that was fun to solve, and if you know me and know the mech/solution, you may be surprised I say that!! Cat done with the Greeks and their theories… now time for a nap.

Cat is free. Fun one -thanks Dr Tom!

Wow, just wow, DrTom! Saw a first piece earlier today, and in collaborating later with the missus, I stumbled into your diabolical idea. Kudos!

rjy wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 8:59 pm Wow, just wow, DrTom! Saw a first piece earlier today, and in collaborating later with the missus, I stumbled into your diabolical idea. Kudos!

So glad you enjoyed it. diabolical and entertaining that is what I was going for, I am always glad if I manage both.

HeadinHome wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 6:57 pm OH that was fun to solve, and if you know me and know the mech/solution, you may be surprised I say that!! Cat done with the Greeks and their theories… now time for a nap.

So glad you had a pleasant experience, even more so because it is out of your comfort zone.

Meg wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 9:38 am This was a lovely solve! Thanks, Dr. T. The cat is licking Dorito dust off his paws.

Ah the orange paw print problem. Happy that you liked the puzzle.

Well, people are enjoying the puzzle so that makes me happy, but I think it may be a bit more difficult than I thought. It is not because it is so hard it is because the mechanism is odd. People are no doubt complicating the heck out of it (some comments I got confirmed that). Sit back, look through the grid for things that make you ask, "why would he do that", that it the usual way in. The solvers so far:
1 Al Sisti (T)
2 whimsy (T)
3 woozy
4 Berto
5 Meg
6 boharr
7 Cindy Weatherman
8 Chrish Kochmanski
9 Darth
10 Pair O Ducks
11 Hector
12 DCBilly
13 MatthewL
14 Lars Caine
15 Mike D
16 andeux
17 Head in Home
18 Carolyn
19 Tim
20 KayW
21 Gutman
22 rjy

After a nudge from the Marvelous @Meg I am debagged.

Well I still haven’t solved the meta, but I always have a supply of 14A for this recipe, which is a sure fire winner at any potluck or barbecue. Can’t recommend it enough, they always go quick.

https://www.seriouseats.com/frijoles-ch ... con-recipe