“I’ve come to accept the fact that I am addicted to Sudoku puzzles. I do them every single day, sometimes three or four of them at a single sitting. Other, less compelling things like dinner or errands just have to wait sometimes. Robert has known me for 15 years and has never known me to be a game or puzzle type of person, so he is quite frankly surprised by my preoccupation with these new number puzzles. Truth is, I’ve never been interested in crossword puzzles, and those scrambled word puzzles just offend my sense of order. I like things to be where they should be, in a logical, organized sequence, so there’s something very soothing about a Sudoku puzzle: rows and columns of numbers all lining up in a very specific order and pattern. But for me, actually solving a Sudoku puzzle isn’t quite as satisfying as knowing I’m about to solve it. There’s a point about three-quarters of the way through, that point when everything is falling into place and you know you’ve got it beat, that is euphoric, “the high” if you will. But ask any Sudoku addict what’s the first thing they do when they’ve solved the puzzle, and most will answer, “Reach for another!” Those of my friends and family who are fellow Sudoku-ers understand completely. Like my sister Jane and future niece-in-law Lauren, who were doing Sudokus during a recent family get-together, while the rest of us talked around them. Or my friend Cathy, who has been know to do them during traffic jams instead of making conversation. In fact, Cathy was going on vacation recently and mentioned she needed reading material for the plane. When I asked if she wasn’t going to be doing Sudokus during the flight she looked at me like I had two heads. “That’s a given,” she stated. I must say I’m not resentful of these behaviours in any way because I understand their compulsions completely. Anyway, I was thinking we could start a twelve-step recovery program for us Sudoku addicts. The first step would be to admit we were powerless over the lure of Sudoku. Trouble is, I’m not sure I’m ready to give up my Sudoku fixation. Those of you who have never tried them, will be wondering, “What’s she on about?” But I suspect a good number of you will be agreeing with me.” *  Post Note from Marlene Goodman:  “Start a twelve-step recovery program for us Sudoku addicts? Nah, you'll never get on the wagon - you'll just start trying to solve the 12 steps!” Become a Sudoku-er!   Free Hand-Crafted Sudoku Puzzles   Swan Heels Windshield Defrogger Side-Ways Sonic Straw Man At Work Uncorked Wine Double Handicap Tetris Construction Clorox Respirator Our Aim Truck Rest Stop Romaine Empire Hardworking Wife What's That? Long, Happy Marriage Redneck iPad Leonardo da Vinci's Unfinished Portrait Microsoft Innovation Mop Dog Ventilated Bridge

28-May-2020