A puzzling topic...

Are you wondering what’s up with the craze over all these Sudoku-type puzzles? There’s Kakuro, Buku Kakuro, Sudoku, High-Five Sudoku, Addoku (Killer Sudoku), Cluedoku and X-Factor. What I’m wondering is… how on earth am I going to figure out what all these are if I can’t stop playing the regular Sudoku! Yes, I’m one of “them…” a puzzle person… nerd, geek, whatever. I spend my last 15 to 30 minutes of every evening working on a Sudoku puzzle. (Gets my mind off of work, etc.)

Another question… Is it normal to feel like you have to do your puzzles in pen? When I do them in pencil, I feel like I’m cheating or something. The challenge is to do the puzzle without having to erase! Doesn’t it just look nice to see a finished puzzle without erase marks, scratches or even notes? That’s my current challenge—learn to do the most difficult of Sudoku puzzles without having to make any notes or corrections.

So what’s up with this obsession? I have no idea. It’s like the old saying, “I don’t know. I just work here.” Well, “I don’t know. I just do it.” I think it’s the mathematician in me—the part that loves logic, analysis and statistics. The other part is a sort-of obsessive thing, I guess—having to complete the puzzles in pen with no extra marks or mistakes.

Is this a way to seek some sort of demented version of perfection? Through mathematical puzzles? I can’t say, but I can say this… if you think I’m crazy or strange, think again. This behavior over puzzles is actually quite normal. We just don’t talk about it because it’s not your normal “water-cooler” topic.

For me, I think I just wanted to bring up the subject to see how others react to such a strange notion of discussing people’s need for perfection over puzzles. Scratching your head? Confused now? Puzzled? Good! That’s what I think I was going for!