Friday, August 12, 2011

Off-Day Puzzle #8: Solution

Of all the puzzles in the PCS series, this was the first to invoke a demon, a satyr, a bat, and a panther. And it was the first to have Kirk Gibson as the answer.

So...where does the day go? Well, you may have noticed that there are a lot of possessives in the poem. There is in fact one per line. If you put the word 'day' to the end of each possessive noun (either before or after any trailing, pluralizing 's'), you get:

A demon(day)s soul rests on the brink,
Running deep as tattoos(day) ink;
But when’s(day) the time, that dreaded hour?
That coaxes forth the panther's(day) scour?
(The belfry(day)’s bat in madness knows,
The key plucked from a satyr(day)’s rose.)
Here _____(day)’s name ends the first week,
When sermon(day)’s voices cease to speak.
But buckle up, week two’s(day) begun!
So when’s(day) the end to all this fun?

So the poem runs through the days of the week Monday through Friday, then up through Wednesday again the following week. The missing day is Sunday. Of the '88 Dodgers w/ 25+ RBIs, only Kirk Gibson's name fits the pattern.

This puzzle is conceptually similar to the Dead Sailors puzzle two years ago. Alas, unlike this current one, the verses of the Dead Sailors poem actually made sense on their own, outside the context of the hidden puzzle). This one, well...not so much.

Congratulations to Mr C, ubragg, Quad, Steve K, Neeebs, Jason, and Josh S. Updated rankings will post soon. Next puzzle, Thurs, Sept 1, 7am!

4 comments:

Steve Sax said...

329 badges dudes!

Josh S. said...

Joe Saunders became my 100th badge last night.

92 badges in 5 days.

(Sax, we should have a badge brag post in the sidebar. I think people are starting to hate us. I mean, even more than usual.)

QuadSevens said...

That Dead Sailors puzzle confused the hell out of me. And it got that Plain White T's song stuck in my head again! ARRRGGGHHHH!!!!

Fernie V said...

Damn EK I thought your clues lead me to days of the week. I just dismissed the idea and started singing the STP song.