Ok, so, first of all, this is was the perfect gift from my Reddit Secret Santa, so THANK YOU! I really hope that this gets filed under "better late than never" not "my recipient is a procrastinating douche," in your mind, but I couldn't fault you for the latter. You most likely have moved on with your life, but I have to tell my tale, so here goes...first, I waited until Christmas day. I was really eager to open it. My SS asked questions about what iPhone I had and what music I liked, so I was expecting something along that vein; Imagine my surprise when I opened a Book on the history and solution to a Rubik's cube and then the cube itself. I had a fleeting moment of disappointment, but then reality set in that Bill Gates wasn't going to be my SS, and anyways who wants a donation made in their name to charity (C'mon, it's Christmas, time for selfishness). So without hesitation I dove into the book and learned a lot about the cube's origins. Then I attempted to solve it. I failed and failed, and memorized the pieces of the solution over the next few weeks, and one day, BAM, solved! I felt so accomplished and smart. Thanks for that feeling, SS! Now I have a "party trick" that I can show off to friends and family. I solve it almost daily and can (in most cases) solve it no matter how disoriented and misplaced the cubes are. On average I solve it in 5-10 minutes. I even try to solve it one-handed, but that's a work in progress. The cube is loose and worked in, and the stickers are beginning to show wear on the corners, it's so well-loved. I solve it when I need to calm down after a long day at work; I solve it while I'm waiting for things like laundry or dinner in the oven; I solve it when I am trying to solve other problems in my life and work as a way to activate my problem solving brain-bits. It's surprisingly therapeutic! Thank you very much SS, you chose wisely. And while I am the main benefactor, I hope it warms your heat to know you made me happy during the time of year I usually get a bit blue. Happy New Year to you and yours, SS, and I wish you much luck and success in 2014! :)