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NYT Spelling Bee

Started by nebo113, August 28, 2020, 05:56:09 AM

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Langue_doc

#3825
Afternoon!

Weird day so far--I must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed so to speak.

Got to Sam's QB and then decided that I wasn't going to play along with the NYT's arbitrary list of which words are acceptable and which ones are not. I was also not happy with the five-paragraph response which would have easily earned a failing grade in my courses as it didn't answer the question, but instead used a lot of words that were meant to obfuscate instead of responding to the email. So I gave myself points for undaunted and untanned, both of which are in the Advanced Longman American Dictionary. I now have my own rules which would not include taxa or tori/torii, but only words that are in current usage according to dictionary entries. Spelling Bee's claim of hand-curating the list of acceptable words is counter to standard practices of how such words are decided--by usage, based on their use/frequency in current publications. I also decided that I was paying for the subscription to the games, so I could make my own rules and refuse to follow any that were counter to standard practices and good old common sense. Hand-curating--hah! I was surprised to see no acknowledgment of the snafu in today's NY Times.

So I got to genius soon after 3--couldn't fall asleep, then wasted the morning, first by realizing that I had forgotten my mask (and had no backup masks in the car) halfway to the grocery store, and then having to spend several minutes looking for parking in the lot, and then discarding my purchases in the store because the few registers that were open had long lines. I'm assuming that it was a staffing problem as store employees now need to be vaccinated. Went to another branch where there were cashiers aplenty, but still wasted half an hour coming home to get my mask and another 45 minutes in the store with long lines and burnt rotisserie chicken. End of vent.

Now I have to catch up on my grading.

ETA: cathwen, I'm still laughing at the image of you picking your jaw off the floor with your grabber stick.

ab_grp

That sounds like quite a day so far, Langue_doc! Ugh about the grocery store business.  I just deleted my own rant about some of those consequences, though I definitely support the vaccine mandate.  As for your own rules for the bee, right on! We sort of do the same thing.  I hope the rest of your day goes better!  Good luck with grading.

ab_grp


ciao_yall

Morning!

SB - Hit GWP, got caught up in other things, never bothered to try to hit QB. Checking answers I was only QB - 4.

LB - Found a 2fer b4ss womanizer-rooftop and, judging by the official answer, that was probably the best I was gonna do without a hint.

Yoga, and hiking/dinner with a friend later.

Happy solving!

ciao_yall


cathwen

Good morning (almost afternoon)!

I got to QB yesterday, but only with a WP hint for harridan.  QB already today, but also with letter hints for the last couple of words.  I just lost patience.

LB:  I had the "official" solution (fraternize-empower).  I found a 2fer today.

Langue_doc, what an ordeal just trying to buy groceries! 

Middle Daughter arrived yesterday and made us a huge lasagna dinner—intentionally, so that we could freeze what we didn't eat for no-fuss dinners later.  Today she's doing the same thing, but with chili—a massive amount with leftovers that we will freeze.  I so enjoy having her here! 

Anyway—happy puzzling!  And ciao_yall, enjoy your hiking, yoga, and dinner with your friend!

ab_grp

Good morning/afternoon!

Got to QBABM! It was kind of tough going for a while but eventually clicked.  Nothing too difficult.  Harridan was our final word yesterday, which I managed to remember after getting help from Shunn.  Haven't heard that one in a while!

I had the schmofficial solution as well, but I will take it! Congrats on your 2fer today, cathwen! And congrats on QB!

Ciao_yall, hope you have a wonderful day and evening!

Cathwen, how great to have a massive amount of delicious food prepared for you! I need to get a daughter like that.  So far, the cooking has been mostly one-sided.  Enjoy your visit!

Langue_doc, I hope you are feeling better today!

Happy solving!

Langue_doc

#3832
Afternoon!

Got up early, completed the puzzles, showered, breakfasted, then decided that I didn't have the energy for today's outing. I emailed the trip leader explaining why I was canceling at such short notice as this trip has a long waiting list, then went back to sleep. I think the crossword needs to be completed. It's either back to sleep or grading if I have the energy.

cathwen, glad to hear that Daughter is preparing extra food for you to heat up later. Did you know that the Brits refer to the walker as a Zimmer frame? I learned that last night in a word game, of all places!

ETA: Merriam Webster on offensive/banned words--scroll down for Will Shortz on the NYT crossword:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/10/15/merriam-webster-typeshift-offensive-word-game/

OneMoreYear

Haven't been able to puzzle consistently recently, so was happy to see a short SB today. Got a weird 2fer on LB; I'm really surprised it accepted the 1st word, but I'll take it.

Hope everyone is feeling well today and has a successful puzzling day.

ab_grp

Thanks for the link, Langue_doc! There is often disagreement about which words are allowed in which puzzles.  There is the argument that many words could be offensive, especially with intent behind them and that many also have more innocuous meanings.  In the crossword, at least, there are clues that should signal the intended meaning of the word or term.  In something more contextless like the bee or the Typeshift mentioned in the article, perhaps that's even grayer.  Lots to mull over.

Got a 2fer! Congrats on yours, OneMoreYear! Mine is pretty straightforward, so I guess there is more than one solution today! I have found a number of good contenders so may try again later.

ciao_yall

My friend cancelled so just went to lunch with my husband, then we stopped at a local bar for a beer.

Genius and a very tight 3fer so seems I should get a 2fer soon, but IDK.


ab_grp

Sorry to hear about your friend, ciao_yall, but it sounds like a nice afternoon! Good luck on your 2fer!

monarda

Got QB with just the matrix today, and QB with forum hint yesterday for harridan  - my last word.

Parasaurolophus

Well, made it to genius, anyway.
I know it's a genus.

cathwen

Good morning!

Genius with both pangrams this morning.  It's a sloggy one, with a number of un- words rejected.  I foresee Shunn/WordPlay in my future.

LB:  Yesterday I had towtrucks-sharpy. . I have a 2fer today also.

Ciao_yall, your afternoon sounded lovely, even if it wasn't as originally planned.

Langue_doc, sorry you missed your outing!  The extra sleep undoubtedly did you a lot of good.

Daughter goes home today.  She's been fantastic—I'll miss her!  But she does have a family of her own to tend to.  And I have a very helpful husband, so I won't be stranded.

Happy puzzling, everyone!