AG
Philly, PA
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Philly, PA
Found the puzzle challenging but fair and fun, and the three clues in the puzzle associated with Chinese culture (Sun Yatsen, John Woo, wood-ear mushrooms) made the puzzle easier, not harder, for me. (As well as Ito, the Japanese skater Midori.) I guess it is about simpatico with the constructor sometimes.
What a clever, satisfying puzzle! I was able to solve it though it took me longer to do-- (I didn't get the theme until very late.) Forgave myself for being so blind because I'm only starting to do the crossword again after many years and don't have much experience with such creative structures! Will think more out of the box next time I hope!!
I got "trouts" and don't really have a problem with it, but I think I would have phrased the question, "Flathead and brook are varieties," rather than use the word "these." That way I think the plural is more associated with varieties rather than a plural reference to the fish generally. Maybe I'm touched to think this quibble makes a difference but somehow it makes sense to me. Very tough but good puzzle.
Solved this very fine puzzle, but used way too much time, because I didn't crack the theme. (Actually neglected the title's clue while just accepting what seemed sure to be the entries.) My loss. It was a clever idea to close the c into a circle.
Had fun solving this puzzle, though it took me much longer than yesterday's, which I enjoyed more.
@Ruth Poley Five minutes off my fastest time also. I didn't find it unfair or the most difficult or obscure for a Saturday puzzle. Not saying it was easy for me, since Saturday puzzles can be a bear. But I got it in reasonable time. Would have been a record time if I hadn't had an incorrect fill blocking me for a while. Some are here complaining about French. For others of us, it's helpful. C'est la vie. Complaints about spanakopita? OK, so it's the NY Times crossword, right? A cultured New Yorker for sure knows spanakopita, so I would say back off of that complaint a bit. Some of us handle filo dough and make it for ourselves, in which case that clue was a breeze.
Solved the puzzle, though I found it quite difficult. Hardest for me was the Southeast. Won land? Wow. Maybe silly, but "Gold meddlers" felt like a play on gold medalists to me, so that's how I came by the answer. Also, coaches who turn average athletes into great ones are called "alchemists," though I don't know if such positive activity qualifies as "meddling." Perhaps no less than turning tin into gold is meddling.
Need some help from the NYT Crossword Community-- I took up doing the NY Times puzzle some months ago and have completed 109 puzzles. Today, when I had looked the puzzle over and was satisfied my choice for the last letter was correct, heard the precious ditty, and received the gold star, I discovered that for the third time in the last month or so, I had exactly tied my best time to date for that day of the week. To the second. Not a second faster or slower, but the exact minute and second. This seemed highly unlikely to me to occur three times out of roughly 110 puzzles. I was wondering what the chances were to have that occur three times? AI says that the raw probability was somewhere around 1 in 500,000 to 1,000,000, but there were some quirks of the program that could make it somewhat less unlikely, none of which made much sense to me. Wondering whether fellow puzzle enthusiasts have also experienced this, and if so, how often.
@Lynn It's a nice vegetable to grow in the garden. A beautiful plant with distinctive leaves, lovely yellow flowers, and a stem that becomes woody like a young sapling. I cook my homegrown okra sliced crosswise and lightly cooked in olive oil until a tinge browned and a bit sticky. Just a sprinkle of salt is all it needs.
@Disgusted in America In the words of the great John McEnroe, when told to play on in the rain at Wimbledon, "You cannot be serious!!"
@Barry Ancona No, you are completely wrong about how I asked AI. And the AI answer took into consideration all of the factors that you are assuming it did not.
You made a lot of assumptions that are not correct. I asked AI the right question and framed it properly. Its answer showed that it understood the relevant factors. There was nothing wrong with how I asked it.
@Peter Thanks Peter--you have revealed why this happened. I did not realize that today's time had replaced the previous record, at least in the most recent instance. The way the information was presented misled me. Seems to me that if the system congratulates you for your streaks of days in a row, etc., it could perhaps be a little more clear that you have just set a new record for yourself. I did have times that were very close to that time, so when it happened the first time, it didn't seem that odd. But for it to have happened several times, well . . . now I know.
@Elbridge Gerry Yes, I also considered rugs!
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