Cryptoquote Spoiler – 08/31/16

“Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.”   —   George Herbert

(Very good advice!  Too many of us – myself included – make too many excuses for not doing things.  Doing anything . . . and failing is much better than doing nothing at all.  The biggest hurdle in life is getting over the can’t do mindset.  So much of confidence is just a matter of momentum.  Inertia cripples it.  Be well . . . get going and do good, friends.)   —   YUR

Jumble Spoiler – 08/31/16

Visual Description:  Team cards tournament.

HLIEW  =  WHILE,  LRUBB  =  BLURB,  RATEHH  =  HEARTH,  FRIDTA  =  ADRIFT   —   Giving us:  WLELBEARDIF

Clue/Question:  The Bridge pair argued constantly, so their opponents hoped they’d – – –

Answer:  BID FAREWELL

(A fairly challenging solve, and a nice pun!  None of today’s clue words are new, but all of the jumbles came up as new.  I struggled to get “adrift”.  I thought I might be able to back into it, but without the DIF I wasn’t seeing the answer, at all.  At first I thought the answer was going to be ALL something!  But, I went back to the jumble and considered that the word did not need to start with a consonant, and finally saw “adrift”.  I don’t know if they’d be considered archaic, but words like adrift, afield, amiss, asea, astray, etc. just don’t come to me right away.  I know that I do use them, from time to time, but they also come off as a little poetic and Shakespearean.  And, you all know that I’m just yer average American couch potato!  Very good answer letter layout.  I really did need the DIF to solve the answer.  I think if you know nothing about Bridge – which I know very little of – today’s answer might have been a little tough.  I don’t think I’ve ever played the game, but I have played Euchre, which is supposedly similar.  I haven’t played Euchre probably in 30 some years!  Do many people still play team card games, or is it kind of a dying art?  Be well and do good, friends.)   —   YUR