67. The Outer Limits

PDF / PUZ

Hello hello! August continues barreling forward, rather quickly in fast! Soon, it'll be time for my PUMPKIN SPICE LATTES (I already used that as a meta answer last year, so I doubt I'll repeat it!). Cubs continue to make a playoff push, my students are doing well to start off the year, and I get to spend the day with coffee, cats, and crosswords. What could be better!

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1. Puzzle #66 answer: WAY TO GO

Correct entries: 48 (a solid Week 2, maybe a bit more like 2.25)

Shortest explanation: As hinted at by the explanation of ABBR, there are seven thoroughfare abbreviations hidden in across entries in the grid (LN, CIR, DR, RTE, ST, AVE, CT). These are the only instances of these seven, and I tried to limit myself to the most common ones, though things like BR, IS, UN, and TER crept in (hence the qualifier). If we head (first letter) out on (above) each of these seven entries, we spell out WAY TO GO, the meta answer, fitting since roads are definitely a way to go! (Inspired by Route 66 - I hope you get your kicks on these puzzles!)

Thanks to Gridmaster T for the graphic!

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3. Leaderboard

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4. This is the third Saturday in August, and we have an...interesting Week 3 for you this time around. If anything, it will likely clock up to Week 3.5 (or maybe even an early Week 4, eep!). But don't let that daunt you - be an intrepid puzzle solver and see if you can crack this conundrum!

(Note that the "calculus" comment is irrelevant and not meta-related; those PDF quips never are! Just some math humor, even though my calculus puns are a bit derivative.)

Good luck, and may all your solves be beautiful!

Mikey G

The answer to the meta, an 11-letter adjective illustrated by the grid, is what I hope you find this puzzle to be.