My cube was looking more than a little bit ratty, so I ordered a set of replacement stickers from the Rubik’s Cube store. Apparently Rubik’s is based in Canada, so I wasn’t expecting to see these replacement stickers any time soon. I was quite pleased when they arrived in my mailbox just four days after placing my order. Great service!
There’s a Rubik’s Cube competition happening this Saturday at Balboa Park. Who knows, perhaps while we’re wandering around the show Karin will buy me a new 4×4 cube? (*hint hint*)
My sad looking cube
Sweet set of new stickers
Sticker prep
Aligning the new stickers couldn't be easier
Dead sexy looking cube ready for abuse
I love games. Board games, video games, puzzles, crosswords, cryptograms…I love them all. As it happens, my favorite magazine is Games magazine. I’ve been reading this publication since high school, and Karin ensures that my subscription is kept up to date. During the weekends one of the things I most look forward to is lounging in the backyard, feet up on the patio table, a tall glass of soda slow dripping with condensation by my side, and a Games magazine opened to the current month’s The World’s Most Ornery Crossword puzzle. Hard clues, thankyouverymuch.
My current puzzle obsession, something that’s taking up far too much of my time as of late, is a Nintendo DS game called Picross. Now, this puzzle shows up in Games under the moniker Paint By Numbers, but I’ve never really paid it much mind. I always dismissed it as a simple time waster, but this DS incarnation has shown me how addicting this puzzle really is.
The objective of Picross is to determine which blank squares within a matrix are to be filled in, with the ultimate goal of revealing an image. Squares to be filled in are identified using numbers that have been placed along the outside of the grid. These numbers tell you, in order, how many squares are to be filled in, how they are sequentially laid out, and how many spaces there are between sets of shaded squares. With each incorrect move the game penalizes you a set amount of time which eats into the 60 minute time limit you have to complete each puzzle.
The obsessive compulsive part of me is fascinated with this game. It makes for a nice break between Rubik’s Cube sessions and memorizing movie monologues. 
Unhappy with the stiff, poorly constructed Rubik’s Cube I’ve been practicing on, I did a bit of research and discovered something called a Slick Cube. I ordered it, and after nearly three weeks of waiting it finally arrived. Let me tell you, this cube is absolutely amazing. The action on my old store-bought cube was tight and awkward. With the Slick Cube I’m effortlessly flicking it around with just a finger. The fluid motion of this cube was strange at first. It felt as if I was cradling a loose collection of plastic bits, but I’ve quickly grown accustomed to it, and finally understand how certain people can solve the Rubik’s Cube in quick sick times.
If you’re a fan of the Rubik’s Cube, you’d be remiss not to pick up a Slick Cube. Once it’s in your hands you’ll gain a whole new appreciate for this puzzle.
Finally, after weeks of waiting, the Slick Cube is mine
Old cube on the left, Slick Cube on the right. As you can see, I was wearing the stickers off of my old cube. The Slick Cube is so well engineered that I can't keep my hands off of it.
I swear, I feel like a closet nerd bring up the subject of Rubik’s Cubes and debating the pros and cons between readily available toy store cubes and specialized speed cubes, but damn it if this Slick Cube isn’t simply a superior product. I’ve now got my solve time under two minutes with this new cube, and am getting better with each rotation.
Perhaps next post I’ll discuss weight lifting techniques, the best way to deal with a hangover, and how to cheat during a fist fight…but for now it’s all about my inner nerd and the cube. ;-)
The good thing about being sick is that it affords more than enough idle time to concentrate on other endeavors. Such is my case, where I’ve been ill for exactly one week today. The wife keeps telling me to go see the doctor, but as with most men I’m stubborn and would rather lay immobile on the couch and suffer.
Sure, I’m still going to work, but I admit I’m not being very productive. All I can do is hunker down and try to concentrate on VBScripting. At night I’m medicated and bored. To counter this I’ve learned how to finally solve the Rubik’s Cube. No longer does this cube hold any sway over me. I’m now the one in control, oftentimes solving it in less than four minutes. I’m no professional, but at least I’ve finally beaten this puzzle and can now check it off of my list of things to do before I die.
I doesn’t take much to humor me. Heh…
After countless twists and turns I've begun to wear the stickers off
Someone, please tell me, is this a boy in drag?
Am I wrong, possibly even cruel, for thinking that this model might, in fact, be a boy in a wig? The longer I stare at it the more confused I become…
