![\"IMG_2299\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/533\/2017\/08\/IMG_2299-1024x768.jpg\")
<\/p>\nYeah, I\u2019m talking about literal puzzles, and I couldn\u2019t even come up with a better pun than that.<\/p>\n
This is what I\u2019ve been working on lately:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I seem to attempt a puzzle on maybe an annual basis for the past couple years (that is, once free time opened up due to more independent kids). \u00a0The original intention was for this to be a family project, but I ended up being the only one that really worked on it. \u00a0And I wouldn\u2019t say that I\u2019m particularly good at it, either; this current one feels like it\u2019s taking forever. \u00a0And it feels, well, almost addicting, in that I get absorbed in it (\u201cjust one more piece\u201d) and stay up late or don\u2019t get done whatever it is that I intend to be doing, and then kick myself afterwards.<\/p>\n
And working on a puzzle is this bizarre feeling of achievement and non-achievement at the same time. \u00a0Hooray! \u00a0I figured out where this piece goes. \u00a0Yay! \u00a0I connected up these two sections! \u00a0And yet \u2013 so what? \u00a0At the end of the day I will have a puzzle (unless I throw in the towel first because it\u2019s been cluttering up the living room for too long). \u00a0What good does it do me? \u00a0I suppose I can rationalize that it\u2019s keeping my mind sharp (though it doesn\u2019t feel that way) and I\u2019m forestalling dementia in the same way as someone who does crossword puzzles every day. \u00a0And there are plenty of things people do for fun that have no lasting benefit, from binge-watching TV to eating big bowls of ice cream. \u00a0But doing a puzzle (or at least, this puzzle in particular) bugs me, I suppose, because at least large portions of the time it\u2019s not inherently enjoyable and has a large dose of frustration added to the mix.<\/p>\n
In fact, it started to feel like that sort of book that you get half-way through and it\u2019s just not doing anything for you any longer, but you force yourself to finish it just because, well, you should finish reading books you start. \u00a0So I\u2019ve moved it to an out-of-the-way spot for the time being, and I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ll end up finishing it up later or just dig up the inflatable \u201croll your puzzle\u201d and set this aside for a longer time.<\/p>\n
So, readers, do you do puzzles, and, if so, what do you do with them afterwards \u2014 keep them in some fashion, or dismantle them? \u00a0Or what other sorts of craft-y hobbies do you pursue?<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Yeah, I\u2019m talking about literal puzzles, and I couldn\u2019t even come up with a better pun than that. This is what I\u2019ve been working on lately: I seem to attempt a puzzle on maybe an annual basis for the past couple years (that is, once free time opened up due to more independent kids). \u00a0The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2209,"featured_media":7062,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[703,702],"class_list":["post-7055","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-hobbies","tag-puzzles"],"yoast_head":"\n