For decades now I have enjoyed doing jigsaw puzzles as a relaxing hobby. A wonderful side benefit of this activity is that it keeps my hands busy for hours, and makes me forget all about eating chips, ice cream, and other not-so-good-for-me foods in the evening hours.
I typically do more puzzles in winter than in other seasons, although over the past decade, autumn has become a busy puzzling-time. That’s due to my husband’s hobby of watching college football. While I’m all in for any Ohio State game, he will watch Iowa-Nebraska, Notre Dame-Pitt, and Tinder Tech-Sisters of the Poor if it’s college football. Those are great times for me to sit in front of my puzzle.
Hubby supports this hobby of mine (as always) and has provided me not only with puzzles on birthdays and Christmas, but also a fabulous puzzle board. This board has a large surface – perfect for 1000 piece puzzles (my favorite choice). It also boasts four sorting drawers to keep pieces separated and out of sight when not in use.
For years I have used this board on a card table, either in the room where my husband is watching sports or in another room in front of a small tv (where I can enjoy Hallmark movies or DVDs while puzzling).
This year started out amazingly well. My husband had purchased a Jane Austin puzzle for me. The picture included the various homes and buildings from her works as well as all the main characters from her books. The back of the poster had a key to each figure, describing their homes as well as their attire. I was so excited about this puzzle that I chose to work on it as my first endeavor in 2023!
Unfortunately, we had not yet set up the card table for my work. Having just moved back into our family room after some renovation work, I was using our pub table to work on the puzzle. When we wanted to use the pub table, I just moved the puzzle board to the bench in front of the loveseat. [This bench is used a footstool/coffee table until we find a replacement. It’s a bit low for a table but perfect for resting your feet.]
Several evenings after I started the puzzle, I was making dinner and hubby was setting the table. Suddenly I heard a large cry from the family room. I went to see what had happened, and my dearest had placed the puzzle board on the bench but didn’t realize there was a book on the bench. [It had only been there a few weeks, so totally understandable.]
This caused the board to tilt to one side and the puzzle began to slide off. I had completed about 2/3 of the puzzle and half of it had slid to the floor. My husband was appropriately contrite and I helped him pick up the pieces and straighten the board on the bench. We then returned to our tasks. I wasn’t upset, because, after all, it was only a few hundred pieces.
As we were bringing dinner to the pub table we heard another crash. Coming into the family room, we saw our cat leaping away from the puzzle board, which she had apparently jumped up on. This action tilted the board the other way, and now the other half of the puzzle was on the floor.
I won’t go into the strangeness of this, just let me say that we have never seen our cat jump on this bench before, or, in fact, go anywhere near the loveseat.
Now my puzzle had about 60 pieces put together, in three different places. I sighed and the next day began working on the puzzle again. Hubby fetched the card table and we set it up safely so that this would never recur. It went a bit faster and I soon had 2/3 of it (actually more like ¾ of it) put together.
The next night I accidentally left a drawer pulled open. As my husband was carrying something into the room, he ran right into the drawer, knocking the whole board askew. Only a few pieces fell off, but I began to suspect that my 2023 puzzling was going to be less than relaxing.
It’s done now, by the way. I hope to start the second puzzle of the year next week. I’m thinking a 50-piece puzzle might be better. Any thoughts?
nice work IF you can get it — still hoping to hear how the 510 piece puzzle went for ya
should be a snap for an expert in puzzling and all that happens around it!!
I will have to say, “That is one beautiful puzzle you put together — several times!” You have great perseverance for puzzling! And the large cry from the living room? Matt could have easily blamed the cat, but, like the gentleman he is, he took full responsibility.
Unlike my husband who took no responsibility for anything unless he was caught in the act. Before our two daughters left home, it was “they” who always did it. I might even be included. Once they were both gone, it was still “they” who misplaced, moved, used or hid his stuff which included everything! One day I said, “THEY” are not HERE anymore! I said, “You must mean ME! “Yes, YOU!” came from the other room.
I’m seriously thinking about getting a cat!
Thank you for sharing that beautiful puzzle! I do admire your stick-to-itiveness!
need to share with Bets that old pic of your wedding – was pretty good, I thought!!
have NO idea what to get you next – looking for a pic of the universe – that might be a challenge!!
Boy! That would be a challenge, John! But if anyone could put the universe together, it would be Sue! I bet their wedding picture is beautiful — and you know, those vows took the first time!!!