Midweek Thoughts on Wednesday
So, here we are, it’s Wednesday—once upon a time, it was known as Odin Day. That name gives away its Norse roots quite easily. Odin, the chief figure in the Nordic pantheon, supposedly hangs out in Asgard with his twin ravens, Hugin and Munin, representing thought and memory. Don’t forget his two wolves, Geri and Freki, and of course, his eight-legged horse, Sleipnir. All the fallen warriors gather at Odin’s hall, Valhalla. Fascinating, right? Odin himself was all about sacrifice. He even traded an eye for a sip from Mimir’s well to gain knowledge. Plus, he had quite the risky venture—hanging from the world tree, Yggdrasil, just to learn the secrets of runes. Quite a backstory! But, you know, when we think of Wednesday today, it’s just another workday, isn’t it? The rich mythology seems buried under routines. Speaking of which, how about we dive into a PIPS puzzle?
Looking for Tuesday’s pip? Check out the guide here.
How to Play PIP
The PIP puzzle consists of a grid filled with colorful boxes, each color indicating a different “state” to achieve. You choose how many dominos you want to fill the grid with, and it’s a must to use all of them to meet the conditions. There are options for easy and medium levels.
For example, consider this challenging tearpip:
In this grid, you’ll notice various symbols and numbers assigned to each color. The leftmost three purple squares can’t be equal, meaning you can’t use equal signs. The two pink squares nearby must total zero. And all the zigzag blue squares? They should be the same. Remember to rotate the dominos as needed when placing them.
Additional conditions can include “less than” and “greater than”:
- All pips in this group must be equal.
- All pips must not be equal in this group.
- The PIP for this tile must be greater than the stated number.
- The exact number must match a specific PIP.
- Any tile without conditions is free for use.
Your goal? Fill every square and use up all the dominos while meeting each condition. Try today’s PIPS puzzle here.
Today’s PIPS Solution
Here’s a basic solution for a medium-tier pip. After this, we’ll walk through a tougher puzzle—consider yourself warned!
Easy
Simple enough, right?
Medium
This one’s a bit trickier.
Difficult
Now, let’s dive into today’s more advanced pip. It starts off like this:
Honestly, this puzzle reminds me of a baby bird. That ≠ symbol from the pink section looks like a small beak—cute, huh? Plus, the big head and tiny tail just scream “Tweety Bird.”
Step 1
Getting started was no walk in the park. Here, you see 0 tiles, ≠ groups, or tiles that are free. No clear starting point. I figured it might be best to place the domino where it can only go one way—like that dark blue 0 tile with some tails and a pink 0 tile with Tweety’s feet.
In the end, I kind of had to guess which domino to use at first and go back to tweak it later. I placed a 0/2 domino in the dark blue 0 to the purple ≠ and a 0/1 domino from the pink 0 to the purple. You could switch them around, whichever works. After that, place the 0/0 domino from the green 0 to the orange ≠.
Step 2
With two double dominos left, here’s the challenge: you can’t join either group! I ended up putting the 3/3 domino in a free tile, alongside the pink ≠. Finished the other two tiles by placing 0/3 from purple 0 to the remaining free tiles, and 0/4 from blue 0 to the orange ≠.
Finally, the remaining 1/1 dominoes were positioned from orange to pink, leading to a 2/4 domino and a 2/3 domino. The 2/4 went to pink ≠, and the 2/3 went to orange ≠. It’s done! There was a bit of trial and error involved—I initially put a green 0/2 domino in the wrong spot, but I adjusted that and it ultimately worked.
Final Step
All in all, today felt like a guessing game at first, but once I got going, it smoothed out. How’s your day going?
Don’t forget to check back for daily puzzle guides, as well as insights on TV, movies, and more!
