August 2023 - Questionable Letters?

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Location - Who is in the Q?

  1. It may help to number the members in each of the three queues 1-7 with 1's at the top.
  2. After member 1 is served and removed from the Where Queue, the remaining members are rearranged to: 3,4,5,6,7,2. Then after member 3 is served and removed, the remaining members are rearranged to: 5,6,7,2,4. Can you figure out the reordering rule?
  3. The reordering rule for the Where Queue is: after the first member is removed, the member that is next in line gets moved to the back of the queue. If this gets repeated four more times, which member will be the last one left in the Where Queue?
  4. After 1 is served and removed from the Who Queue, the remaining members are rearranged to: 3,2,5,4,7,6. Then after 3 is served and removed, the remaining members are rearranged to: 5,2,7,4,6. Can you figure out the reordering rule?
  5. The reordering rule for the Who Queue is: after the first member is removed, the next pair of members (2 and 3) switch places, as do the next pair (4 and 5) and the next pair (6 and 7). If this gets repeated four more times, which member will be the last one left in the Who Queue?
  6. After 1 is served and removed from the What Queue, the remaining members are rearranged to: 7,6,5,4,3,2. Then after 7 is served and removed, the remaining members are rearranged to: 2,3,4,5,6. Can you figure out the reordering rule?
  7. The reordering rule for the What Queue is: after the first member is removed, all the remaining members reverse their order. If this gets repeated four more times, which member will be the last one left in the What Queue?
  8. Last ones served: At Yankee Stadium...Oscar the Grouch,,,tried on a Uniform.
  9. What an odd assortment of people, places, and things. Do you recognize the code?
  10. Use NATO code to solve.
  11. YOU

Where R U? (Part I)

  1. It may help to make a list of what letters are and are not in different words (1-4) and different positions within words (1-5).
  2. Example of logic: DUSTY has a hatched-line Y, which tells us there is a Y in the 5th position, but it’s not in word 1, and it's not in word 4 (SNAKY also has a hatch-line Y), and it's not in word 3 because the 5th position of word 3 is a T (MOIST has a dotted T). So where must the Y be?
  3. Try using the same logic for the letter I.
  4. The following three clues give a possible order for figuring out each of the sixteen letters. The first five:N in word 2, T in word 3, N in 4th position, Y in 5th position, D in 1st position
  5. The next five: F in 1st position, U in 4th position, O in word 3, I in 3rd position, K in word 4
  6. The final six: R in 2nd position, T in 2nd position, S in word 3, S in word 1, O in word 1, K in word 1
  7. The four words are 1) STORK, 2) FUNNY, 3) STOUT, and 4) DRINK
  8. part 1: you TURN

Where R U? (Part II)

  1. What letters get used doubly?
  2. Put those doubled letters in back-wards order
  3. part 2: KNOTS

The When-V of All of Your Friends

  1. Your friends are standing around the clock looking at the raised numerals side-on. What would those look like from their perspective? Look at the example picture and consider how the other numerals on the clock would appear to your friends.
  2. After you rotate the whole clock 4 hours to the left (clockwise), Irene is looking at IX… but from her perspective looking at it from the side of the clock, it will look like a long dash followed by a short dash (or one might even call it a dot).
  3. Your friends are each separately giving you directions to follow, so they would each like their own solution to this part of the puzzle.
  4. Using Morse code on what each one saw... Irene: NINE, Val: SEVEN, Xavier: TEN
  5. Now use the clock hand to reveal the solution using the times that your friends gave you.
  6. SECOND HAND

What the X Goin’ on?

  1. Use the clues to match up who, what, where, and when in the puzzle. Each person only has one object, time, and room that they match up with. Circle the correct connections (for example, the Study & 10pm), and then you can cross out the other rooms at that time, and other times at that room.
  2. Much of the logic you must use is transitive. For instance, if you determine that room A was visited at time B, and you determine that object C was used at time B, then object C must have been used in room A. Also, if you determine that person X used their object in room Y and that room Y was NOT visited at time Z, then person X must NOT have used their object at time Z.
  3. When you have solved the grid, you can add to your Detective’s Notes that Colonel Mustard was in the Kitchen with the Knife at Midnight… but why were they there?
  4. Cut out the six grids and use the Mansion Layout to figure out how to arrange them. Which letter holds the key?
  5. SHIFT OTHER GRID BY FOUR
  6. SNACK

Why?

  1. Try naming the images (glyphs). What do their names have in common?
  2. Try finding one-word synonyms to replace the bolded and underlined parts in each clue. After you find a few, you should notice a pattern.
  3. The word trios in each clue have a common ending.
  4. Each written clue is associated with two glyphs. The name of the puzzle and shapes connecting the glyphs indicate which letter is the key to connecting them.
  5. What code might let you join the glyphs in a way that would FLAG the answer?
  6. WHY NOT

How Meta!?

  1. Use the letters U-V-W-X-Y to determine which puzzle answers go into which Metapuzzle clue. Two-word answers are broken up as indicated.
  2. Follow the directions in the order indicated by the… letters?... in the word ENgLISh.
  3. Starting at the indicated square in the map grid, the directions from each clue should give you one letter of the solution.
  4. A clue like truSt would mean to go one square to the south.
  5. Some clues, like brEW, might walk you around but return you to the same position where you started. Each clue indicates one letter, so only your final position at the end of each clue counts.
  6. PIZZAZZ

Bonus

  1. The clues all solve to words that have what in common?
  2. They all have double letters. Example: The warm season = suMMer
  3. Other words on left side are: saVVy, AArdvark, hiCCup
  4. Say the letter W out loud. W is not in the solution words, but what you just said out loud is.
  5. The words on the right side are: raCCOOn, peNNy, gluTTony, skIIng, fuNNy, gaMMa
  6. VACUUM CONTINUUM