Da Vinci Cryptex

I had mentioned the Da Vinci Code Quest on Google in a previous post. Yes, I had so much fun solving the daily puzzles. I even set an alarm to remind me to solve the last puzzle as soon as it came out. Took me about 5 minutes, so I was confident I made the first 10,000 who completed the puzzle.

Got my confirmation in the mail today... the Da Vinci Code Cryptex! It's brass and quite heavy. Very nice souvenir for the fun I had with the puzzles. A big Thank You to everyone who made this happen.













Now, will I try to solve the final puzzle to win the Grand Prize of untold riches? Who knows?!

Postscript [05/27/06]: Yes, I tried solving the final puzzle, but no, I didn't solve it. Unlike some who cheated by picking up solutions posted online, I worked on the puzzle on my own... ergo, I didn't even get to finish the first set! I'd blame it on the eternal conflict between my ADD and my OCD.

But I did get to see the movie. My take: I'd have enjoyed the movie more if I hadn't read the book. The film has its merits, surely. Still worth seeing if only to learn something new... or at least come out wondering "what if?"

Cabbage shoot - Part 3

Another follow-up on my "Cabbage Shoot" and "Cabbage Shoot - Part 2" posts.

Someone (Rej) suggested that I plant the cabbage shoot in soil. Well, a few days ago, I noticed that the bright yellow plant sitting in my crisper drawer had started to wither because the mother wedge had almost totally dried up. No more nutrients to sustain the shoot!

So, I pulled out an old pot and planted my new plant in the soil. I sheltered it under the plants just outside our patio so it won't get shocked by the light, the Florida heat, and the general outside world.

It's been a week and here's how she looks today:







Notice how green the leaves are! And there seems to be a flower blooming! I'll continue to monitor our little cabbage darling for as long as I can. Until next time.

Fondness for puzzles

I am so ready to watch movie. I just finished reading the book, and I must say The Da Vinci Code is a page-turner. Whatever controversy surrounds it, on whether it's fiction or not, it doesn't matter. The story is well told, and the author really takes you there. The action and intrigue holds a candle to plots weaved in TV series like 24 and Alias.

If you want to learn something new, or at the very least read about some radical thought (remember, the book is touted as fiction), pick up the Da Vinci Code. Even for just the story. I loved it for the riddles, puzzles, and codes (actually figured out a few).

Info and links pertinent to the movie, the author, the book's references, etc. are compiled on Wikipedia (heed warning on spoilers).

If you're like me, who grew up collecting puzzles (talk about solved jigsaw puzzles piled under the bed because there's no more space to hang them on the walls), you'll try the Da Vinci Code Quest on Google. I'm on the Day 7 puzzle (and kinda stuck! Haha!).

Did you know that the Mona Lisa is both male and female?

Cabbage shoot - Part 2

I talked about how I discovered that a cabbage had grown in my refrigerator crisper.

Well, I didn't want to throw the thing away, so I shoved it back in one of the crisper drawers. I didn't put it in a plastic bag anymore. This morning, something yellow caught my eye... in the crisper drawer where I left the cabbage. Look what I found!



How totally fascinating is that?! The shoot had grown tall (trying to reach for light) and remained light yellow (should I have opened the fridge door more often?). The wedge continued to wither as it fed the shoot.

And look at this close-up!



Wonders never cease.

Musty AC

Big Problem: Our apartment's air conditioning unit is giving off a musty smell.

Bigger Problem: The apartment maintenance guy came to clean the coils but did a piss-poor job; musty smell is still there.

Biggest Problem: My roommate is allergic to molds.

I took a look at the AC coils (the tubes containing freon that cools the attached fins that cools the air that flows through). OHMYGAWD! Many of the fins were sqwooshed flat (most likely from the last maintenance job, obviously long before we moved in), not to mention the mold and mildew growing all over the thing! I don't want to imagine what's cultivating behind the flattened fins! No wonder the apartment smells like a rain forest everytime the AC comes on!



Here's where my OCD kicked in. I had to straighten out all the fins and clean out all the mold! [I need to do this. And I need to do it now!]

My first challenge was what tool to use to un-flatten the flattened fins. [Tool - yes! I love tools!] Checked my tool cabinet and there was this putty knife. Tried that but it felt awkward -- not ergonomic.

Maybe I'll find a better tool in the... uhm... kitchen drawer. Found a plastic knife... that should work.

After a few un-flattened fins, I felt the upper edge of the knife was too wide -- some fins didn't straighten out nicely.

Back to the kitchen drawer. AHA! The orange peeler! Excellent. That worked.





When I finally straightened out all the fins, the next task was to clean out the gunk. Bought two implements to make this happen: a coil cleaner (foaming detergent in a spray can), and a water pump.



I sprayed the coils with the cleaner and used the water pump to flush out the loosened dirt.



I poked with the orange peeler and brushed with a bristle brush (some of the resident fungi were pretty well-anchored!), and flushed with water for almost two hours. Okay, more than three hours. I was surprised my ADD hadn't pulled me away sooner.

When it felt like I had fished out about a pound of moss and seaweed, I sprayed foam cleaner one last time, flushed with water one final round, and let my ADD take over. [I need to check my emails!] (Sometimes it's tough to have OCD and ADD at the same time.)



The coils don't look brand new (some stains are permanent), but I think I did a pretty good job -- certainly a lot better than that maintenance guy. Now to see if the roommate's histamine agrees with me.