Picking up from yesterday –
So, I get to spin, and the category is “What Are You Doing?” which is awesome, because then we already immediately know 3 of the letters.
I get to spin, and since I land on $700… That’s like a medium-sized dollar amount. So, I think there’s still a fair chance I might do better on my next spin. And I think it’s more likely that there are more Ns than Gs, so I call G first, just trying to strategize a little more money.
Then I call it, and immediately go to spin again, because we gotta get going, you know! There’s only so much time for this game!
And Pat laughs at me a little with the vibe of like ‘see if it’s up there first’ haha.
They put it up and he says, “Now you can spin. Don’t get ahead of things.”
I spin a $650, so less than the first spin, but it doesn’t matter as there’s also only one N in the puzzle. So, I would’ve had the same amount of money either way.
And then I bought an “i,” because you know… “ing.” So, all is goof there.
Now, this is where I’m stupid haha. Since I have the I’s, I see I is right at the top of the word!
Words that start in IN are pretty common. But of course we know it’s not that, because I already have the Ns up there.
So, IM words are also fairly common ish.
But in my head, I was judging myself. “Oh, M’s such a stupid letter. M isn’t a wildly popular letter. You’re gonna look so dumb if you guess M and it’s not up there.”
I wasn’t paying enough attention to the Wheel of Fortune rules I had for myself – one of the very main ones being “if the clues of the puzzle dictate that a letter is likely, you call it. Period. Even if it’s not “popular.” If you have reason to think there’s a Z up there, you just call it.
So, I absolutely should’ve guessed M. This was my bad.
Of course had I gotten M, I would’ve been almost positive that 2-letter word was MY, as that would really be all that made sense in this context. (I doubt I would’ve thought it was “me,” but anything is possible.
After that, I’m not 100% sure what i would’ve called, but RSL (from RSTLNE) would’ve been safe. I think I would’ve been more likely to call letters that RSL before I would’ve been likely to call a vowel (like E, or A, which wasn’t in the puzzle).
I like to think I would’ve called R had all that other information been up, but who knows.
The reason I guessed T here is because you could definitely be doing something to something else, or be doing something to a place [e.g. obv this doesn’t fit here, but like “biking to Grandma’s” (I don’t think that’d ever be a puzzle, but you get the gist.)
There was also a chance you could’ve been doing something *at* a place – [again, not with these letters, but like “swimming at midnight”].
So, M was a *better* choice, but T isn’t completely unreasonable. So, I think I get maybe a B- for this move. Not great, but it’s okay.
Anyway, I lose control of the board (obviously).
Steve goes. He gets an S and buys an E. I don’t really 100% know what he was thinking with E, because we’ve already discussed M is where it’s at. If I drop the ball, pick it up, Steve! haha.
Also, There are so many Is in the puzzle, I just don’t fully see where E would go. But it’s a common vowel, so also not crazy. And also, I’m not here to judge Steve’s choices. And at least we have the info that E’s not in the puzzle.
Now, Ben gets control of the board again. He calls R, and he smartly calls M! He picked up the ball I dropped. He also gets P, and then bankrupt.
He’s having a good time, dancing it out. And I look like the most intense little girl in the world. (I know I’m not actually a little girl haha, but it kinda feels like I look like one on Wheel of Fortune. Maybe it’s the pigtails.)
For some reason, I call V first, before Y. It might be because I think of those two, there’d be more likely to be multiple Ys, although I’m not sure if either of them will be multiples. Then I get Y.
Basically always chip away at the things you ‘know’ (or at least know as much as you can, before they’re revealed) before going out in the world.
So, I get Y. Then, I’m not totally sure what the last word is. I have ideas and letters I want to call. But I’m not sure. So, let’s get that O, just to put ourselves at ease, and verify there are no vowels left after that.
Everything in RSTLNE has been called except L. Obviously “L” looks pretty good. (The puzzle at this point reads “IMPROVING MY S_I_ _ S.)
So, that’s what I would’ve called and… I almost land on $5,000!!! Just a few clicks off. Off. Woulda been SO fun to have gotten lucky enough to be back in control of the wheel and really do something with it, but alas, it clicked on in to bankrupt.
Steve solves and then gets to start the last puzzle, which is where I’ll pick up tomorrow.