Mental Stimulation

One of Hubby’s Christmas gifts was a wooden Sudoku board. He loves those puzzles, so when I saw the square board with its number tiles in a catalog, I grabbed my charge card and dialed. Turns out it’s one of his favorite gifts!

I love it that he does puzzles—any kind of puzzles. Everyone knows that mental stimulation is good for the brain, so I’d like his brain to be stimulated as often and as well as possible. I mean, it’s in my own best interest to keep what lurks in his cranium in shape, don’t you think?

Anyhow, the Sudoku is a hit so I’m tickled. I’ve played with it a couple of times and while I’ll admit there is some charm in moving the tiles from one spot to another I don’t think it’ll ever be my puzzle of choice. Why not? Too many numbers, and not nearly enough words!

Oh. Right. There are no words in Sudoku, unless you count the ones in my head when I fill in a line and realize I’ve got two sevens but no three. Then, there are words—but none fit to print, I’m afraid.

Hmm? My favorite puzzle? I thought you’d never ask…

I’m one of those old-school crossword-puzzlers. Lots of words, hardly any numbers and loads of scribbling in the margin with a pencil. What more could I ask for? Sometimes, if I’m feeling especially lucky, I even use a pen to fill in the spaces. Not often, but now and again. And you know what? Even when I realize that thirty-seven down isn’t clashing but crashing, I never mind—not even when it’s written in black ink. Now that’s something that would drive my darling number-moving husband to distraction, but not me. I just mentally change the word and move along to thirty-eight down’s clue.

I suppose that’s why there are so many varieties of puzzles to choose from. Sort of like a furniture store, isn’t it? A chair for every bottom, don’t you think?

What about you? Are you a puzzler? If so, what kind best suits your…er…well, what type of puzzle is the perfect fit for you?