Sudoku

An evil force has wormed its way into the heart of Chicagoland, an evil, addictive conspiracy, much like cigarettes and cocaine. This crazy fad I speak of is Sudoku, or Su Doku.
The concept is simple, and really doesn't require any mathematical skill, but the numbers are everywhere. It's like a crossword puzzle, but numbers. A newspaper or Sudoku book or Sudoku online will publish a box filled in with the occasional number. Your job is to "Fill in the grid so that every row, every column, and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9." (sudoku.com)
Simple enough, right? WRONG! It has to be one of the most frustrating one-person game I've ever played, but people are going crazy over this number game! My best friend Alex was the first person I knew who seemed really hooked. He's amazing at any inane game ever invented (Boggle, Scrabble, Set, Gauntlet, Worms). Now, he's so good he can complete an entire puzzle correctly in five minutes.
Every day I see at least one stranger playing Sudoku, and even more if I take mass transit of any kind.
Over the weekend I went to Borders and an entire table was devoted to Sudoku books.
But now that I've done some research, it's not just Chicago that has been affected. Earlier this year, newspapers in London started publishing Sudoku puzzles, and in the mid 80's the Japanese (who didn't create the game but gave it its name today which means "single number") devoured the 81 little boxes.
This week, according to USA Today, three Sudoku books made the top 50 best sellers list.
I'm not completely opposed to Sudoku, I just can't do it. I don't have the logic or the patience to fill out the puzzle.
Try it for yourself. The least it can do is drive you insane.