Happy Friday! If you're new to Now I Know, you'll notice that today's format differs from the rest of the week. On Fridays, I pause to write the "Weekender," my "week in review" type of thing, or to share something else I think you may find interesting. Thanks for reading! — Dan
Some Games For The Quietest Time Of Year
Hi!
Everything seems to quiet down during the holiday season, which is a nice and needed break for many of us. Which also means it’s a good time to try some games. Here’s what I’ve been playing recently — some are things I’ve shared here before, some new. Give them a try and let me know what else I should looking to try myself!
Solebon Solitaire, a free iPhone app. I’ve been playing “Baker’s Game” on it for years — and that’s not a joke. My stats are below. Those 449 hours? That’s 18 days of my life playing this game. (I installed it more than a decade ago, so that’s not awful… right?)
Sway — It’s a live trivia game on your phone for real money (but like, not a lot of it). If you’re familiar with HQ Trivia back in the day, this is similar. Lots of live games throughout the day — some free, some needing “coins” to get in. You can earn coins through on-demand 1:1 free matchups.
Best Guess Live by Netflix Games — This is a lot of fun, and they give away a lot of money… $15,000 last night! Download it and give it a try tonight at 8pm et. The rules are simple but I’ll let the host share them. (And I think tonight is being hosted by Howie Mandell.) This game is going to blow up because next week, they’re apparently giving away $1 million. You’ll need a Netflix account to play.
Inkwell Games — The sponsored Now I Know recently but I’m truly a fan, playing every day. They have two games — Fields and Stars — and both are super-simple to learn and devilishly hard to master. If you’ve never played before, start with Monday’s game, as the puzzles get more difficult as the week goes on.
Artisanal Sudoku — I’ve shared this before, too, but it’s a mainstay. Each week, James sends out three sudoku puzzles with non-standard rules like arrows, thermometers, even fog… and they’re great. He also curates three similar puzzles from the sudoku community. There’s enough sudoku to get you through a week, and that’s great, because he sends more the next week!
Spark — a lightweight trivia app with three simple games tied to a theme each day. I’ve learned things through this app that have inspired a few upcoming Now I Know stories!
Enjoy!
Need a Last Minute Gift? Share Curiosity!
A lot of you have given my course, “The Curiosity Habit” a try — thanks!
Maybe some of you want to share it with someone you love? A few people have asked me that, so I set up a way to buy a gift certificate for The Curiosity Habit. It’s easy… well, easy-ish.
Step 1: Go to that link and buy the gift certificate.
Step 2: Email me to tell me you bought it.
Step 3: I generate a coupon code for you to give to whomever you want, and email it back to you.
Oh, and if you still want to buy The Curiosity Habit for yourself? You can do that here — no three-step process required!
The Now I Know Week In Review
Monday: The Accidental Igloo That Saved a Life: I’m shocked this guy survived.
Tuesday: The Checks That Saved 75 Christmases: An uplifting story for the season.
Wednesday: The Opposite of a Drive Thru Window?: This seems like a really bad idea on so many levels.
Thursday: Companion Companion: When your pet needs a friend, by law.
A Few Dollars = A Big Difference
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To become a monthly supporter via the newsletter’s Support page, click here. If you do, you’ll get the ad-free version going forward!
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And thanks! — Dan
Long Reads and Other Things
Here are a few things you may want to check out over the weekend:
1) “The Riddle That Seems Impossible Even If You Know The Answer” (Veritasium/YouTube, 17 minutes, June 2022). I may have shared this before. I can’t remember. Either way, it’s amazing — and the solution is not at all intuitive.
2) “A septic tank in this tiny Arizona town could crack a 2006 cold case” (Phoenix New Times, 20 minutes, May 2025). The subhead is “Keith King vanished 19 years ago in Seligman. A private detective thinks he knows where King's body is - and who killed him.,” but the words “septic tank” are the important ones, right?
3) “A Very Big Fight Over a Very Small Language” (The New Yorker, 23 minutes, December 2025). The subhead: “In the Swiss Alps, a plan to tidy up Romansh—spoken by less than one per cent of the country—set off a decades-long quarrel over identity, belonging, and the sound of authenticity.
Have a great weekend!
Dan