[.puz][PDF][Solution] Difficulty: 2.5/5
I have a funny feeling that the act of choosing to be optimistic might end up being the radical act of faith that characterizes the holidays for our household this year. And many of you, dear solvers, have stocked the woodshed of my heart with fuel enough to see me through until spring. The well-wishes and kind words I received in response to the essay I posted last week were overwhelming, and I haven’t really got the words beyond thank you. Thank you to those of you who wrote me about managing your own chronic pain; thank you to those of you who wrote about pandemic fatigue (its own sort of chronic condition); thank you to the person who mailed me a stack of puzzles for convalescent solving.
Anyway: optimism. We’ve got a beautifully trimmed tree, a warm hearth around a charmingly kitschy fake fireplace, a growing stack of presents wrapped in ribbons that the cat doesn’t seem interested in trying to choke herself on. (A minor Christmas miracle.)We’re boosted, ready to splash the takeout cash, and grateful for puzzles and puzzle people. And here’s an early present: Will Shortz in conversation with my pops!
Thoughts and spoilers for “Money Is No Object” after the jump.
I was originally messing around with a MONEY IS NO OBJECT (15) revealer, using exclusively answers like CRYPTOCURRENCY and ELECTRONIC CHECK, but ultimately I liked the idea of building a puzzle around the phrase DIGITAL WALLET and including, well, just stuff you might have once held in a wallet.
Surely paper receipts are going the way of the dodo, and even back in the 90s I wasn’t often stuffing a check in my billfold, but I still appreciate the conceit here: RECEIPTS, ID, CHECK, COIN, all uploaded to your DIGITAL WALLET. Remember paper money? Me neither.
I would have preferred to find another 15-letter answer to pair with ELECTRONIC CHECK, since as it is the 13-letter revealer opposite EMAIL RECEIPTS makes for a less-than-pliable theme set. But we make do, don’t we? Keep calm and puzzle on.
Happy solving, friends.
-Ross