I managed to actually finish a Rubik’s cube for the first time yesterday. I would have to say however, that is was mainly a fluke.

It comes with instructions that are actually fairly easy to follow… but I must admit that I don’t do most of the first steps because it’s easier just to do it my own way. However, the sequences of moves to get the last few steps are quite useful as they show you how to manipulate small parts of the cube at a time without disturbing the rest of the pieces. The process is supposed to only take 7 steps. Not bad really. I can get to the seventh step in a matter of minuets without any problem. However, the 7th step has you doing the same sequence of moves either 2, 4, or 8 times. Each time I would do that sequence it would just mess it up more and more. It never made any sense.

I have come to the conclusion that the directions are junk. They get you to where all you have is 4 corner pieces to solve and then they tell you to mess it all up again. So I just fiddled with the thing over and over and over agian. Then, out of nowhere, and by no clear motive or direction by me, it was solved. Don’t ask me how I did it. I have no clue. It just happened.

My wife is a little upset… the cube was a gift for her after all. She has still yet to solve the thing. That being said, I don’t think it really counts as my solving it. Firstly, I used the instructions for the majority of it. Secondly, I wasn’t really trying to solve it when it seemed to solve itself.

Still… if anyone asks if I have ever solved a Rubik’s cube, I’ll say yes. :P

On that note, these things are like crack! They are extremely addictive. I would certainly suggest that anyone and everyone have one. You just can’t resist them. If I see one, I have to pick it up. It’s like a siren’s call sings out to me and I can’t help but move towards it, pick it up, and attempt to solve it. The fact that I can get so close without acutally solving the puzzle is amazingly frustrating but at the same time, you can’t give up when you’re so close! They make great gift ideas, especially for kids. But really, they’re for everyone. They are a ton of fun. If you don’t have one, go get one. They’re not even that expensive. Amazon.com is selling them for around $10!

The coolest thing is that even though there are those who can solve these things super quick. There are also tons of different kinds of Cubes:
The Sudokube
The professor’s Cube, it’s a 5×5. I can’t even imagine how hard that is.
There’s even a cube that you can put your own personalized photos on.

With so many different ways to feed my addiction, I don’t know if I’ll ever kick the Rubik’s habit. I don’t think I want to either. It’s just too much fun.

Good thing I’m an art student! Because giving away old school assignments is the perfect super cheap art school student gift. If they’re your family, they’ll probably love to see some of your new artwork. They’ll love it even more if they actually get some of it! This also conveniently solves the problem of “where the heck am I going to store all this stuff?” Because the walls and shelves of your relatives are the perfect place to display your work.

If none of your assignments are worthy enough to be gifts, you could always draw/paint/sculpt something. For the most part, art is cheap. Especially if you’re just using paper and colored pencil. If you properly mount/mat the image so that it will either fit in a standard frame or you can put a little stand behind it then it can look fantastic. Artwork is a great gift, hands down. It’s personal, unique, and just theirs. Trust me, they’ll love it.

Now… if you’re a programmer, or a business major, or a botanist… sorry, I have no idea what you should do for cheap gifts. Although, I’m sure you could find a way to make some art related to your field. Programmers or math majors can create fractals with programs like Apophis. If you’re a business major, I’m sure there are crazy charts/graphs that you could print and mount. A botanist could find some cool plants or something to give away… or make some cool artistic something from dried leaves. But other than that, I’ve got no idea. All you non-artists, you’re pretty much on your own for this one. :P

Type to you later,
~Nathaniel