Merry Travels
◆ · By ajk · Published 2023-12-24T05:00:43.042Z
Meta Prompt
The meta answer is a means of transport
Happy Sunday. :)
Given that the SSS cupboards were looking a bit bare, I put together another pretty straightforward but hopefully entertaining puzzle this week. It's inspiration will be self-explanatory, so much so that folks might well be able to take a couple of short cuts. But there is also a regular path.
Thanks to Abide and Wendy Walker for test solving, and in Wendy's case for a key addition to a clue. Thanks as usual to @Joe Ross for tech support.
The meta answer is a means of transport.
Nudges:
Those long acrosses seem pretty wacky, no?
Such entries often conceal other words
In this case, those words are all related, and the 'Merry' in the title (plus the puzzle's timing) suggests that the connection might be Christmas-related
OK, you can probably get from those words to the answer, but it is explicitly spelled out as well...
...just not in the grid
The starts of clues are a common hiding place
And a bonus content nudge for after you finish:
Missing anyone? Look more carefully at some of those odd clues. ;) Also, apparently the last two were different in the original poem, so Dunder and Blixem are also represented.
Checking for previous play data...
1A
His and ____
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Across
- 1AHis and ____
- 5AAid
- 9ADunder Mifflin boss Michael
- 14AFencing implement
- 15ABrief absence?
- 16AEponymous scheme (based on nerve and deception)
- 17AStandard way a famous king might answer the phone
- 19A"We're filming the 'Universal Soldier' sequel in Peru. Dolph wanted some ____ ruins in the shot."
- 20AFlat-bottomed boats
- 21ALegal doc. verifying a type of car's roadworthiness, say
- 23AGreat moment?
- 25AFormerly, in a way
- 26A"Everyone wants internet origin stories from me, because my ____"
- 32AAccounts or people
- 36AImitate
- 37ABuilt prior, as a house
- 38ADesigner Wang or actress Farmiga
- 39AFlinch
- 41AGovt. law-enforcement group
- 42APlague
- 43AThe A in AD
- 44ADolphins Hall of Famer Dan
- 46A"Well, this ____ fine mess"
- 47AAbound with
- 48AItalian fountain's noble gas?
- 50AHome to the Knicks, briefly
- 52ACardinals, on a scoreboard
- 53AGreater environs of a central Texas populated area
- 59AWhere one might find Bruins and Rangers
- 63APersian, these days
- 64AHero of an English football tournament, perhaps
- 66AMore secure (e.g, after the Blitz ended)
- 67APlay segments
- 68AJurist Gorsuch
- 69APublix employee, perhaps
- 70ASome are born in July
- 71AHome to the Munch Museum
Down
- 1DAdjustable margins
- 2DLike some sagas
- 3DExecute again
- 4DType of combat
- 5DDismissive syllable
- 6DMeadow moms, maybe
- 7DAccumulated knowledge
- 8DBegged
- 9DBackbone
- 10DThink of, as an idea
- 11DHow often the Saints have won the Super Bowl
- 12DRussian ruler (var.)
- 13DHue
- 18DPart of an F1 track, often
- 22DBrady Bunch maid ____ Davis
- 24D"Gimme ____" (start of Rutgers or Rice cheer)
- 26DAttempt to touch, clumsily
- 27DProvide a thought
- 28DPopular pasta
- 29DChest material
- 30DVideo golf shout?
- 31D____ Gandhi (Indian prime minister, 1984-1989)
- 33DPine product
- 34D"You ____" (playground retort)
- 35DRoot of all evil
- 40DOrdinary citizen
- 42DProof of purchase, as for cereal
- 44DQuick home loan?
- 45D____ for Nancy
- 49DIt's accompanied by low pressure in the Eastern Pacific
- 51DHaughty expression
- 53DHome to Madison and Milwaukee, briefly
- 54DSea that's now mostly sand
- 55DPastry or pour-over joint
- 56DNon-stick coating named for its chemical composition
- 57DSpeed competition
- 58DNumerical prefix for a sea creature
- 60DDangerous time
- 61DPhone cord shape (yes, those used to be a thing)
- 62DCockney's greeting
- 65DNaval or Federation letters