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2:11 AM
@msh210 *DEFERENTIAL
though unsure what "that" is doing, unless "that's subservient" is the definition?
Or I guess "that's=that is" is the splitter, so like "Moody retained elf, that is, subservient"
yeah
 
1 hour later…
3:42 AM
@PrinceNorthLæraðr yep!
@PrinceNorthLæraðr that's what I had in mind, yeah
ill
pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis
:O
3:51 AM
@msh210 CCC: this word, (how ever long this word is)
I bet some of the Lair denizens can think of a clue for it.
Maybe it anagrams to something nice.
(I can't at the moment but it would be interesting to see how others would do it)
4:11 AM
"Hilarously long word is the start of painful neurological effects unless one super tiny short element: an explosive, hollow carbon-1 bone starts to immediately shatter." (45)
Idk it kinda fell apart xD
CCCC: Computer sloth (2)
hahahah
Oh HAHA
I didn't realize that my C4 was ironic
I'm just tired and this was a quickie
4:37 AM
Dude I don't understand most of today's CC
22a?? 20d?? Parsing for 20a?
MULLET from swimming style? (6) is driving me crazy
how
4:56 AM
That seems to be a whimsy cryptic definition: A mullet is both a hairstyle and a kind of fish, so it might be a "swimming style". Ha, ha.
But the parsing of 20a is straightforward, I'd say.
@MOehm a whimsy cryptic definition?
(someone pin the C4?)
5:34 AM
@PrinceNorthLæraðr I mean whimsical. Tongue-in-cheek, if you like. I doesn't have any real wordplay.
5:49 AM
There's also the larger context, of course: The whole puzzle has a theme of hairstyles. (So instead of "boo" you probably meant "bob", no?)
"dooo", possibly
boooo you guys are all so lame
an ai is a type of sloth, and a computer might be running an AI, although i wouldn't necessarily say computer = AI?
@Jafe That's it
You are right, computer isn't really AI but again I was pretty tired and doing chem hw
5:56 AM
CCCC: Hooks swinging during game in the woods? Pay attention! (4,5)
re: hairstyles, i heard that one of bob odenkirk's first suggestions when he first started playing saul goodman was "could he somehow have a combover and a mullet?"
some actors understand their characters on a level i never will
@Jafe L(shook*)ARP (live action roleplaying game) = look sharp (pay attention)
correct!
CCCC: About sculpture, perhaps you shouldn't put it before the horse... (4)
6:06 AM
@PrinceNorthLæraðr yep!
someone else wanna take this? I'm gonna sleep really soon and don't have one prepared
you can post it tomorrow when you have time, there's no rush
Okay 👍
good night folks
g'night
the existence of the ai and the aye-aye suggests a next step in biological research: discovering new species with increasing numbers of /aɪ/'s
3
e.g. a lemur subspecies with sloth-like eyes could be an ai-eye aye-aye
then when one of them develops superhuman intellect and starts commanding the armies of madagascar the soldiers would be like aye aye, ai-eye aye-aye
3
 
2 hours later…
8:30 AM
1 clue left for my crossword, should be out later today
gladys puzzle probably won't be ready until next week... it's a crossword with a tetris mechanism
@Jafe a dropword?
I don't entirely stink (I think) at composing crossword clues, but I do stink at getting them to fit together in a grid. (I usually wind up having to include some crosswordese, or too many unchecked squares, or even 2-letter words or lack of symmetry. You can see examples of all of those in my posts on the site.) If you have tips (or links to tips) for me to improve in that, I'd appreciate it.
(Which is part of why I like the C4. I get to compose clues without worrying about fitting them in a grid.)
8:47 AM
not sure if i have any great insights but the choice of grid type certainly affects the difficulty a lot
to me, blocked uk cryptic style grid is easy mode, just need to check every second letter
barred 'variety' cryptic grid is medium difficulty, in theory check at least every second letter but in practice it ends up being a little more
and then there are american-style crossword grids where you check everything because you like pain and suffering and using "eon" and "era" in every freaking puzzle
btw, qwx has an "assistance" mode where it shows what letters are possible in the grid with the progress so far... shows you early on if you run into a situation where there's only one word that can go in a certain spot and that word is "quincunical" or something
thanks
 
1 hour later…
10:23 AM
@Jafe ¡Ay, ay, ay!
11:12 AM
eye caramba
(idk 🤷)
11:54 AM
enemy soldier tasked with surveilling the mutant lemur commander: "aye aye, I eye ai-eye aye-aye"
2
cryptic's live folks
0
Q: Slow and steady wins

Jafe Solve on Penpa+ Across 3. Round disks of metal, carbon and hydrogen found inside Mars and Venus? (9) 7. He sang "Heartbreak Hotel" and "Hotel Quenya", for example (6) 9. Forthcoming Pixar film show (7) 10. Misbehaving rebels, having no right, stole perhaps Benjamin Netanyahu's ornaments (8) 11. ...

 
4 hours later…
3:35 PM
0
Q: Which piece moved last?

Tim SeifertAfter my last few retrograde chess puzzles were all a bit on the trickier side, this one should once again be a bit more approachable. Your task is simple: Can you tell which piece made the last move? Please provide your reasoning in your answer. Have fun! :)

 
2 hours later…
5:07 PM
@Jafe ooooh video game chain puzzle part 3? :O
 
3 hours later…
7:40 PM
0
Q: An unexpected way to find an ancient city

LezzupThe following flags could be translated into the following letters: Could you find out which ancient city these flags represent?

 
3 hours later…
10:46 PM
0
Q: Quickest way to reach this position

LucenapositionYour friends Alice and Bob decided to play a chess game. Alice played as White and Bob played as Black. The game reached the position shown below. You saw Alice (White) make a move and after a few more moves, Bob castled. All moves were legal. Question: How quickly could the position shown in th...


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