Hello there! It’s that time of year when snow starts to blanket older, grayer snow and evolution earns a big thumbs-down as citrus season conveniently collides with chapped-lip season. It’s the time when bakers everywhere hole up in the kitchen to create their holiday masterpieces to share with family and friends, a messy process that we do in private so as to not frighten those who will later be putting the treats into their mouths...CONTINUE READING
Not sure about you, but when I was a kid, I used to love to get mail. I don’t know what it was, but whenever I received anything in the mail, I got super excited. My mother even bought me a book that listed companies who I could write to and get a response. So much fun! Yes, this was exciting for me-what can I say; I lived a sheltered life. Haha just kidding!...CONTINUE READING
It’s November. Yes, I know. In fact, it’s quite nearly December. Since about mid-September, when stores started decorating for Christmas, everywhere I look there are pumpkins, ghouls, cornucopias, Christmas trees, and other assorted Fall/Winter holiday things. All the stores are gearing up for their big sales season, and all the puzzlers are dutifully putting together Halloween, Thanksgiving, and other holiday puzzles. So much orange! So much white (snow)!...CONTINUE READING
You’d never know it based on the past few years, but I absolutely love to travel! Whether it’s by plane, train, or automobile I’m all in, and someday I need to add a ‘ship’ to that list and take an Alaskan cruise. Since a trip to Europe was cancelled thanks to Covid a few years ago, my passport has been in a drawer, and my excursions have consisted of driving one state to the east to visit my Dad. I’ve suddenly become the epitome of an armchair traveler, vacationing vicariously watching episodes of “The Amazing Race!” Clearly, I need to pack a suitcase and go…somewhere!...CONTINUE READING
Are there any other puzzlers out there that think of themselves as amateur foodies? I am 100% that crazy person taking pictures of my food in restaurants. I don’t often post them to Instagram, but I just like to preserve the memory of a good meal and gorgeous food presentations. I mean, we eat with our eyes first, right? One of my favorite meals has to be fish and chips at a tiny little dive-ish place in London. Or this rotating seasonal menu item at The Plantation House. Or the best Lilikoi tart in Maui. Ok, ok, I could seriously go on and on and on...CONTINUE READING
For many of you, you are currently prepping for your Thanksgiving dinner and the Christmas season is just around the corner. I am the type of person who starts celebrating Christmas on November 1st. I can’t help it, I want my favorite time of year, to be as long as possible. Also, since we don’t have family in the area, Thanksgiving is a holiday that is quite uneventful in our house. So, I really get excited this time of year, especially when I bring out my Christmas puzzle tote. Each year I always have the same dilemma, I have way too many Christmas puzzles on my to-do list than I have time for. The holidays are a busy time of year, filled with local events, shopping, gatherings and way too much food. There’s just so much baking. Which as you can see, leaves me a little short on puzzling time for the growing Christmas puzzle collection. There’s just so many good puzzle images!! ...CONTINUE READING
These Galison shaped puzzles are near and dear to my heart as they are some of the puzzles that really piqued my interest when I started ramping up my puzzling early in the pandemic. I have always loved puzzles but would usually only have a few in my possession and would do whatever puzzle someone bought me. So that would include a lot of traditional images.
Now, since joining Puzzle Warehouse’s Puzzle of the Month subscription in 2020, my world has been massively expanded!!! There are so many colorful and modern images, I can’t get enough! Shaped puzzles are an exciting variation, and there are a few artists who have collections from Galison...CONTINUE READING
To me, Thanksgiving is a perfect holiday because I love to cook and it’s a low-fuss celebration. There’s no need to write cards, buy presents, etc., but I still get to be surrounded by friends and family. Add to it that not only do I enjoy eating Thanksgiving leftovers (which is good because I always cook enough to feed an army), I also get to USE the time left over from not having to do all the preparations associated with other holidays to puzzle and that is bliss!...CONTINUE READING
Hello there! I’m back from my first ever trip abroad, where I both loitered at and competed in a massive international jigsaw puzzle contest. The contest was 4 days solid of puzzling, where contestants could compete in up to 7 rounds of competition in a geodesic dome with naturally good lighting in a town where 15th-century buildings nestle among modern apartments and shops, where the public garbage cans are consistently undersized for the number of people in any given space, and where food is both reasonably portioned and reasonably priced...CONTINUE READING
