* * * * *
Interlude II
For dinner we stopped off at the Cracker Barrel, a predominately eastern
chain of restaurants with a country theme to both the architecture and style
of food and found mostly along interstates (and featured in my friend Hoade's
[1] book Ain't That America [2]). The food is very good, if you like heavy
southern cooking, which I do.
Anyway, while waiting for our food we played with the small puzzle that every
table has—the Jump All Till One puzzle. A triangular piece of wood with
fifteen holes drilled into it. It is populated with fourteen golf tees,
leaving one hole empty. The puzzle is to leave one golf tee in the puzzle. To
remove a tee you jump over it with another tee, removing the tee just jumped.
I can usually get two tees left, although by “cheating” I was able to solve
the puzzle. By “cheating” I started with one tee, then jumped holes and
filled the puzzle in backwards.
I did that technique as well, and usually ended up with two tees I can't
place.
Kurt did not fare any better.
One of these days I'll get around to writing a program to solve the puzzle
once and for all.
[1]
http://www.dharmabum.org/
[2]
http://www.iuniverse.com/marketplace/bookstore/book_detail.asp?isbn=0%2D595%2D09529%2D1
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