I recently solved Rubik's Cube for the first time in my life. You might think that's not a spectacular achievement, but for me the feeling was like an amphetamine rush.

When I was a kid, I owned no less than six Rubik's Cubes. I had at least three of the regular ones, and I remember having one on a keychain. I was fascinated by the awesome complexity of it, the lovely symmetry when the six sides were all arranged in their proper colours. But of course, every one of my cubes was not arranged in its proper colours, and every one taunted me with its kaleidoscopic jumble of mixed-up chaos.

I never did solve any of them. My Cube-solving ingenuity was limited to a single side (unless you count the ingenuity it took to pull the mini-cube pieces apart and rearrange them in place).

But now, something like twenty years later, with the help of a little booklet that came with the cube my ex-girlfriend got me for my birthday last year, I put that little childhood regret to rest forever. The final twist came unexpectedly; I didn't realize at first that no more twists were needed. But I gotta tell you, once I did realize, there was a moment of sheer happiness unlike anything I've felt since I was that kid who owned six Rubik's Cubes.