Sudoku crazy

Finally, I've caught on the sudoku craze. I tried to solve my first number place puzzle last Friday while at my hotel room in Tagaytay City (I was attending a seminar on anti-corruption sponsored by the US Embassy - details in my next post).

Soon after the delegation arrived at Taal Vista Hotel, we repaired to our own rooms to prepare for dinner and the evening session. While trying to catch a quick nap, I browsed the day's paper and chanced upon the Sudoku puzzle.

Since I was not feeling sleepy anyway, I simply plunged into solving it, not minding its level 5 difficulty rating. Naturally I failed to solve it. My MA classmate Jude, a co-delegate and who is a Mensa member who writes sudoku puzzles for fun, commiserated with my fortune. He did not fail to give me the lowdown on sudoku's origins either, being the genuis that he is.

Anyway, I solved my next attempt - a level 1. The feeling of accomplishment was quite zen-like. Now I'm hooked and on a roll already. Aside from my favorite newspaper, I get my daily fix from this generous site.