MEOW #175 Before & After

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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ajk
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Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2020 4:22 pm
Location: Colorado

#21

Post by ajk »

Dangit I'm pretty sure I test solved this one and now I can't remember how it works. :lol: :lol:
I blame jet lag. :lol:
Check out this very cool project by many of your favorite muggles to raise money to fight cancer. You get a fun puzzle bundle and good causes get $. Win-win: Crosswords for Cancer
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ajk
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Location: Colorado

#22

Post by ajk »

lol ok there it is. Helps if you actually look through the whole puzzle. :lol:
Had just as much fun this time, because I forgot how all the steps worked. :lol:
Check out this very cool project by many of your favorite muggles to raise money to fight cancer. You get a fun puzzle bundle and good causes get $. Win-win: Crosswords for Cancer
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Wendy Walker
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Location: Unionville, PA

#23

Post by Wendy Walker »

Oh, I remember this one! Great job as always, @Cap'n Rick!
Good luck, fellow Muggles!
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benchen71
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#24

Post by benchen71 »

Off the couch. Love the grid!
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta! :shock:
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KayW
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#25

Post by KayW »

:crossed_swords: :rabbit: :cat: Fun one, Cap'n. Thanks!
Contest Crosswords Combating Cancer (CCCC) is a bundle of 16 metapuzzles created to help raise money for cancer-related charities. It is available at CrosswordsForCancer.com.
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BarbaraK
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Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 2:37 pm
Location: Virginia

#26

Post by BarbaraK »

IMG_6685.jpeg
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HeadinHome
Posts: 1091
Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 9:06 am
Location: Charlotte, NC

#27

Post by HeadinHome »

Got it! Might not fully understand it, but I got it! Heeeeeere kitteh kitteh … where’d she go?
The other Wendy. :roll:
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Berto
Posts: 354
Joined: Sat Feb 05, 2022 4:10 pm

#28

Post by Berto »

Cat out and on the loose!
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Cap'n Rick
Posts: 1561
Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
Location: Nahant, MA

#29

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Leaderboard delayed due to a power outage in this "smallest municipality by land area in Massachusetts". I can report that 62 people have solved, which is a new Day 1 personal best on MEOW!
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles here! Check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays" here!
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Cap'n Rick
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Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
Location: Nahant, MA

#30

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Day 1 Leaderboard

Okay, we finally got our power restored! Here's that leaderboard now with 66 solvers:

Al Sisti
Abide
boharr
whimsy
Wendy Walker
Darth
ajk
BarbaraK
DrTom
Mwoychick
Bird Lives
andeux
Devoid
JM
Pair O Ducks
LarsCaine
FrankieHeck
Hector
Qmark
Tom Wilson
Meg
DCBilly
Cindy Weatherman
MatthewL
Danny K Bernstein
kymike
JWords
ChrisKochmanski
Carolyn
woozy
kurtalert
lbray53
hcbirker
hoover
Dave C
Laura M
Ergcat
DIS
Nick
Mike D
CPJohnson
Jeremy Smith
DebbieC
Chris
Sharkicicles
Philip Chow
benchen71
pain
markhr
Dow Jones
Tim
KayW
Gutman
emmie
Sendhil Revuluri
potemkinish
gabriellem
HeadinHome
Berto
Deb W
FloydSD
BuzzingCow
Mr Tex
imontoo
Johnny Luau
Bob cruise director

Please let me know if I missed anyone!
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles here! Check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays" here!
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Cap'n Rick
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Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
Location: Nahant, MA

#31

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Leaderboard Update

Three more solvers bring our total to 69:

Tyrpmom
kurtalert
pain

Please let me know if I missed anyone!
Last edited by Cap'n Rick on Fri Apr 05, 2024 11:23 am, edited 2 times in total.
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles here! Check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays" here!
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Cap'n Rick
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Location: Nahant, MA

#32

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Friday Nudges
► Show Spoiler
► Show Spoiler
► Show Spoiler
► Show Spoiler
► Show Spoiler
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles here! Check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays" here!
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Cap'n Rick
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Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
Location: Nahant, MA

#33

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Leaderboard Update

Two more solvers have correctly identified our "phrase-turner" - bringing our total to 71:

LB800
frostyjhammer

Please let me know if I've missed anyone!
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles here! Check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays" here!
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Cap'n Rick
Posts: 1561
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Location: Nahant, MA

#34

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Leaderboard Update

Two more solvers bring our total to 73:

BrennerTJ
JHSeeman

Please let me know if I've missed anyone!
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles here! Check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays" here!
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rjy
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Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2021 12:52 pm
Location: Gaithersburg, MD

#35

Post by rjy »

Catching up from a week away, but glad to have gotten to this, nudgelessly I might add. Quite clever and fun, Cap'n, with a nice aha to boot! Thanks!
Ray
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Cap'n Rick
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Location: Nahant, MA

#36

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Leaderboard Update

@rjy brings our solver total to 74!

Don't miss @BrennerTJ's awesome reveal graphics tomorrow!
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles here! Check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays" here!
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Cap'n Rick
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Joined: Sun Aug 02, 2020 12:44 pm
Location: Nahant, MA

#37

Post by Cap'n Rick »

Ahoy, Muggles!

The adept phrase turner is none other than "Vanna White" from the long-running TV game show "Wheel of Fortune" (or just 40A WHEEL, for short). The first hint to solving was the long phrase at 20A/54A "WHEN THE CAT'S AWAY THE MICE WILL PLAY" - which felt appropriate given @DrTom's vacation schedule. :D The next hint was the lengthy clue for 71A HOUSE - "Versatile word that can follow the familiar phrase at 20A/54A, the meta answer at 72A/73A, and a handful of other things". Well, it turns out that "Wheel of Fortune" has a category called "Before & After" where they mash two familiar phrases together ("A Chip Off The Old Block And Tackle" and "A Breath Of Fresh Air Fryer" are two more examples), and that's what I tried to simulate here with the long quote and Vanna's name - both of which can come "before" HOUSE. The "handful of other things" were 5 other symmetrically-placed grid entries that can precede HOUSE to form new words/phrases (i.e. 19A PENT, 34A SAFE, 40A WHEEL, 46A BIRD, and 63A FARM). These 5 new HOUSE words fit with 5 other clues and the first letters of those 5 other entries (14A VILLA, 15A AREA, 28D NEST, 29A NOOK, 31D ATTIC), in grid order, spell "VANNA".

BeforeAfterVannaHouse2.png
Vanna Before & After.jpg

Now Vanna White may also be clever at turning phrases verbally, but we know she's had a lot of practice turning phrases physically on the show. :D If you solved in Crosshare, you saw a cool effect where the meta answer displayed at the bottom "turned" the way puzzle answers turn on "Wheel".

Thanks for solving, everyone! I hope I didn't "play" too much while the @DrTom "cat" was away. :D

Special thanks to @BrennerTJ for "turning around" the above awesome reveal graphic in one day!

Until next time!
Cap'n Rick
Ahoy! Check out my meta puzzles here! Check out "Smooth Sailing Sundays" here!
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