Welcome to another edition of Sunday puzzles. Just for fun and camaraderie. Yes, there is a theme this week but if I told you what it is, it would be too much of a clue. The same theme vaguely runs through three puzzles, excluding the Catch Phrase. You know how Nova Land always claims to be feeling fuzzy-headed? Me, too! I got a flu shot and have felt like crap ever since. I’m struggling with this diary and I have a deadline.
Puzzle #1 - Geography
Name the building and city where the picture was taken?
Stix, what kind of cuckoo puzzle is this??? Well, I wanted to start to with a picture. It’s educational! And somebody might recognize it. Maybe. And everyone can guess. There are no bad guesses here. I’ll post some additional pics in the comments for clues if this proves too difficult. The real puzzle is why I visit all these religious structures when I’m on vacation. I think it’s because I like architecture.
More puzzles after the break.
The next puzzle is a cryptogram. Solve with simple letter substitutions. For instance, you might try replacing every K in the puzzle with a V, then every E with an L, etc. I write out two full alphabets and place my guesses above the corresponding letters on one and scribble out used letters on the other. Usually it's easiest to try to figure out some of the shorter words first. Trial and error. This puzzle does have an odd twist. I’ll give a clue later, if needed.
Puzzle #2 - Cryptoquote - Solve the quotation and then name the author.
REX IZK YORK PZTU AZTIKUP ARI NZ SZU PZT; REX YORK PZT ARI NZ SZU PZTU AZTIKUP.
Here's a classic example of a catch phrase puzzle.
newborn
plank
The solution is Baby Onboard. Get it?
Puzzle #3 - Catch Phrase
In (TWO TIMES!) the free state
Lauer touches Stamos' thing
Sheesh, that will take about five seconds.
*Expanded rules and explanation for our version of an acrostic*
The solutions to the acrostic clues form a geometric grid with a fixed number of rows and columns. For each row, the answer to a clue is a word of increasing length, such as a three-letter word, a four-letter word, a five-letter word and a six-letter word. The next solution in the row after the first is formed by adding a letter to the previous solution in the row and scrambling.
In between adjoining solutions in a row, put the extra letter. I.e., if your answers were...
CAT, TACO, COATS and ACTS ON
...you'd place an "O" in between CAT and TACO, an "S" between TACO and COATS, and an "N" between COATS and ACTS ON giving...
CAT – O – TACO – S – COATS – N - ACTS ON
Please note that a solution to a clue may be comprised of TWO words.
Every answer in a column will have the same number of letters and every row will start with the same number of letters.
When you solve all the clues, the added letters will form two or more related down solutions. The added letters may spell words top to bottom, bottom to top, be scrambled within a column, or carry over from one column into another.
In a normal acrostic, the size of the grid would be specified. For example, 3-4-5-6 X 8 means there are 8 rows and each row will have four answers, started with 3 letters in the first column and progressing to the fourth answer with six letters, producing four columns of answers and an additional three columns of the added letters. But that would be TOO EASY for this bunch, so now we merely list the clues and let you figure out the size of the grid, but each row will have the same number of answers and each column will have the same number of rows. Oh, there are usually a few unnecessary clues that should be omitted. Why? Just because.
Confused? I don’t doubt it. I have a headache trying to explain it. Feel free to ask for clarification. You will soon see that the acrostic is a group effort.
Finally...
Puzzle #4 - Acrostic
Acrostic clues:
- Sonoran sight
- Wild
- Save
- Reduces
- This might lead to a certain job
- Driving force
- Discard
- Exclusive
- Clean
- Police procedure
- Drained
- Harmonious
- Fixed amount
- Noted expatriate
- Love may be found in this
- Saturated
- Roused
- Hospital procedure
- Rock
- Transfer
- Tried desperately
- Vestigial part
- Scrap
- Dieter’s temptation
- Energy unit
- Attend
- Certain youngsters
- Unused
- Separate
- Project
- Like certain monuments
- American cousin