Well, good for you all!! It is the cross-word puzzle. Not as ancient as I thought!! The title for the world's first crossword puzzle is disputed based on whom you ask. The first puzzle that was called a "cross word puzzle" was written in 1862 by Our Young Folks in the United States. The first "cross word" was "dream". Crossword puzzles are said to be the most popular and widespread word game in the world, yet have a short history. The first crosswords appeared in England during the 19th century. They were of an elementary kind, apparently derived from the word square, a group of words arranged so the letters read alike vertically and horizontally, and printed in children's puzzle books and various periodicals. Although Maleska is usually credited with the first crossword phrase in The New York Times, an 1862 puzzle in the Lady's Book had phrases that are considered modern such as the expression "I did it". Crossword-like puzzles, for example Double Diamond Puzzles, appeared in the magazine St. Nicholas, published since 1873. Another crossword puzzle appeared on September 14, 1890, in the Italian magazine Il Secolo Illustrato della Domenica. It was designed by Giuseppe Airoldi and titled "Per passare il tempo" ("To pass the time"). Airoldi's puzzle was a four-by-four grid with no shaded squares; it included horizontal and vertical clues. On December 21, 1913, Arthur Wynne, a journalist from Liverpool, England, published a "word-cross" puzzle in the New York World that embodied most of the features of the genre as we know it. This puzzle is frequently cited as the first crossword puzzle, and Wynne as the inventor. Later, the name of the puzzle was changed to "crossword". In 1925, the New York Public Library reported that "The latest craze to strike libraries is the crossword puzzle," and complained that when "the puzzle 'fans' swarm to the dictionaries and encyclopedias so as to drive away readers and students who need these books in their daily work, can there be any doubt of the Library's duty to protect its legitimate readers?" The first book of crossword puzzles appeared in 1924, published by Simon and Schuster. "This odd-looking book with a pencil attached to it" was an instant hit and crossword puzzles became the craze of 1924. So, for Annette, TM, Bobbie, Cynthia and Garden Gal: Thanks to all for playing, see you all next week!! Nancy.

Hi Heather Let see, one of my favourites is SkyView - shows location of planets and stars even in your house - I have the paid one but you can get it free also. AppZilla2 - has a lot of apps on it like a flashlight, level, hearing test, mirror etc. CBC Radio, Global Video (I can watch tv shows), some radio stations. Kobo and ibooks, Facebook, Scrabble, Bejeweled, Angry Birds(Seasons) Pinterest, Voice Actions (love this one - like Siri on the iphone) LOL I stubbed my toe once and the voice asked me if I was okay LOL. I also have Canadian Tire for the ads, TED. What I love best are the podcasts - I listen to history podcasts from BBC every night when I go to bed. Things You Didn't Learn in History Class is another podcast I really like. LOL I have become reaquainted with the Magna Carta, William the Conqueror, medieval England. I wish they had these when I was taking history in school. I also play Words with Friends and my niece suggested I get the Hanging with Friends. I love my ipod for the camera and video and checking my email is much easier than using my computer. I also use Skype. Anne

Luckygardner--Threadwords was free. Try searching Amazon for free games (I know last Dec, I just found it searching through the free books). Alisande? Have you tried any of the free books? There are a gazillion classics--which I mean to read, but haven't gotten around to yet. But a lot of the free books by unfamiliar authors are actually VERY good. If you like mysteries with lots of twists and turns--try the Paul Pilkington book--it's almost always near the top of the free list, can't recall the title. A lot the other free books I've read (and it's been many dozen by now) are surprisingly well written--and there are every kind of book from mystery to romance to comedy to biography to other non-fiction, cookbooks, sample chapters--I literally have bought only about 5 e-books since getting mine. Yes, there have been a couple of clunkers, but a very very small percentage. I'd highly recommend giving a few of the free books a try. Read the reader reviews--I've found they're a pretty reliable source of info.

I can't stand to not be busy! Sitting is something I only do in the evening when I watch tv with oldest DD who lives w/me, and the occasional breaks taken on this darn tablet, like now. lol I have a space in an antique mall which is a lot like having an actual job. I paint vintage furniture and sell items which have a French 'vibe', which makes my space a totally feminine 'shop', with lots of 'pretties'. Every other week I visit youngest dd/dh, and my 2 grands, 9 and 5. GD is 5, and it's all about princesses, castles, barbies, and all the teeny tiny paraphernalia that goes along with it! She also loves watching youtube videos about 'the lives of Barbie and Ken' narrated by a young woman named Sandra~they remind me of infomercials. Say Yes to the Dress is another favorite, but when she visits me, loves to go thru my vintage 'things' or play dress up, wearing my glittery heels. lol Although she's a girlie-girl, she has moments where she can be a total.tomboy. GS will play on his xbox, and is trying to teach me~i'm just not quick enough with the remote 'thingie'. If I can get him away from the technology, he loves games, and legos where he'll sit for hours building a 'village' or shopping mall. I like to add my own silly details and he always says, "grandma, that doesn't go like that". I tell him I'm thinking outside the box. Traveling is one of my favorite things to do, even if it's someplace not too faraway. This weekend we(youngest DD/DH, my youngest son, oldest DD, and son-in-law's mom, and myself)are going to Fredricksburg, Tx(about an hour and a half away)for the weekend. It's youngest DD birthday, and she wanted to get away and has a nanny who comes to stay w/the kids. So it's wine, food, and fun...and great shopping!! Sometimes I feel there aren't enough hours in the day for me. ;)