Hello World

@MC I don't bother solving Sam E's puzzles anymore, I already know that I don't enjoy his cluing style. I feel like people should pay attention to who the constructor is and their cluing style, I'm willing to bet the vast majority of the angry commentators today wouldn't have bothered trying. Life is too short to slog though puzzles that you don't enjoy, just reveal the puzzle and move on. In other news, today was my fastest solve ever!!

@heironymous 11D: "Like the Roman Empire around 48 B.C."

@HeathieJ Thank you for responding with kindness and sincerity instead of resorting to sarcasm and veiled insults. It's honestly exhausting to see the number of petty spats that spawn because people can't resist clapping back in the replies instead of moving on, so your comment was an unexpected gem. Going high when others go low isn't always easy but it makes this a better place and an overall more positive experience.

@Paul Yep, pretty much how I felt as an Asian. It's not really offensive but did rub me the wrong way. It's like a death by a thousand papercuts: each incident isn't a big deal but it adds up. What makes it worse is having to justify yourself time and time again because people (generally white Americans) don't understand what it's like to be a minority and just think you're are overreacting to a single event.

@Nancy J. Yeah, being kind to one another goes a long way. We can't control how other people act but we can control how we respond to them. The regulars here play a large role in shaping the community since people will follow their lead. If they're kindly responding to angry comments and being helpful, people will perceive this place as a friendly one and imitate them. If they're the ones who are snidely criticizing others and clapping back in the comments, people will perceive this place to be a toxic one and act accordingly.

@Barry Ancona There's evidence the Moche were cultivating potatoes almost a 1000 years before the Inca. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0305440318303327" target="_blank">https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0305440318303327</a>

@HeathieJ Ditto, I absolutely tore through the puzzle and hit a brick wall in the SE, I spent more time there than solving the entire puzzle, haha. I did manage to set a new PB so it worked out in the end. Sometimes you're on the same wavelength as the constructor and the answers are obvious. Sometimes you aren't and you can't find a toe hold anywhere. I don't think it's unreasonable to struggle with a puzzle that doesn't click with you, I have a few constructors that are on my skip list because I don't enjoy their cluing. It's all relative in the end.

@CalGal It looks like the comment was purged, thankfully. Big fan of "Lights" as well and Ellie Goulding's earlier work in general.

@Barry Ancona Why do you feel that it's OK to insult their intelligence? Why is it that whenever someone posts a negative comment about a puzzle, you go on the offensive and take them down? I get that bad takes are exhausting to read but that doesn't give you the right to bully people in the comments.

@Nancy J. These types of comments make me sad, since all it really does is further entrench people into separate camps. Sure complaints can be mean spirited and overwhelming at times but is mocking Thursday complainers really solving anything? Are you winning anyone over to trying out rebus puzzles by insulting them? If anything you're just proving to them that you *are* smug and elitist. It's not on you to convince others but contributing to the problem isn't helping either.

@M&M I think chalking up complaints as a skill issue is an unfair assumption to make. Sometimes people just don't find things interesting or enjoyable, it doesn't mean they're bad at it. That line of thinking is really off-putting and a reason why people choose to lurk instead of interacting with the community. Doesn't feel great when you don't like something and you're told it's because you're not a good enough solver. FWIW, I thought this was a pretty easy puzzle, still don't enjoy rebus though.

@Mr Dave I think it was pretty gentle rebus/trick today which is why there are less negative comments. I dislike rebus puzzles but I didn't mind it today, I think having the downs be proper nouns helped. Overall, it was a fun puzzle.

@Eric Hougland Thanks! I'm pretty close, in the low 20s now. I think I'll get there by the end of the year, fingers crossed!

@B I feel your pain. I've been trying to get my friends into crosswords for a while now and the random difficulty spikes on Mondays and Tuesdays are destroying them :(

@Caroline Kearney It got deleted but I was responding to a comment that insinuated the puzzle was beyond the commentator because they weren't smart enough.

@SP Amusing and thoughtful are subjective, IMO, but objectively it's well constructed and many people did enjoy it.

@Nancy J. There's no option to search for comments on the Android mobile app, at least I didn't see one.

@The X-Phile You're not the only one. Not a fan of grid designs with a bunch of isolated sections because it doesn't feel like a cohesive puzzle. I'm just solving a bunch of mini puzzles, which is tedious.

@SP I don't see how they're being a troll, it's a benign comment stating their displeasure at the puzzle. I don't understand why they need to justify their opinion, it's not like they were bashing the constructor or the puzzle, they just didn't like it. It feels like people here want answers so they can clap back at the commenter instead of hearing them out.

@The X-Phile They're probably getting flagged and deleted