Puzzled

FBR Lining up her Next Victim

I honestly forgot how effective jigsaw puzzles are in the time consumption arena. Having an empty house necessitates the rapid passage of time so I can arrive at March 28^th when my Favorite Panamanian returns from her tropical sojourn. I’d been so busy driving down the accumulated DVR backlog that I hadn’t cracked open any of the puzzles I’d received for Christmas. That ended this past Sunday when I pulled down the first 1000 piece of the season.

Completed Puzzle

I found it almost therapeutic and definitely time consuming as it drew me in. I’d actually taken myself to task over the past few weeks as I sat, slothlike, watching way too many movies and TV shows (I know, a startling turn of self-examination). Since my surgeon restricted me from any physical workouts for the past two weeks I needed another outlet and surprisingly the focus on the puzzle helped while concurrently keeping me away from eating things I shouldn’t. I become almost obsessed when I’m working on one and found myself up last night nearing midnight as I put the final piece in.

I think my wife likes it when I work on one of these because we can talk while I work on it and she doesn’t feel like she’s keeping me from watching something. It also insures I’m safely entombed in the Man Cave and not running wild in the streets, although we’re both convinced my wild street running days have slowed to a  crawl (literally). I‘m puzzled out for the weekend though as none other than Cantankerous Friend shows up this afternoon for his introduction into the mysteries of the First Friday of the Week. We’ll follow that up with a Saturday showing of Bohemian Rhapsody with the Great Aunt and Soxfather. Additional beer may also fall victim to our partnership, probably a safe bet.

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                           

BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law, formerly known both as MEF – Most Excellent Fiancé & MEG – Most Excellent Girlfriend; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt = my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rdmusquetera (musketeer); Buddy – AKA the Wonder Pooch – family dog, a black lab – hates squirrels, died in 2017; Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog, surrogate grandchild while awaiting arrival of the BRS; PanaGals – female relatives/friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Excellent Boss – my former direct boss at work; Deckzilla Dude – senior citizen carpenter/contractor; Voices of Inappropriate Worth - members of public who come to every Worcester public meeting to complain, all are on public assistance along with demeanor issues