Today I want to talk a little about why I enjoy puzzles and why I selected the puzzles I mentioned in part 1. Having started on one of the puzzles, I think some of this post will take on a little more nuance than if I had dived in right after writing the first part.

I like several things related to jigsaw puzzles. First, I have always had a strong appreciation for art and admiration for the people who create art. My personal gifting in this, such that I have, lies in the area of words, not pictures. This makes me appreciate activities that bring me close to creating visual art like coloring books, photography, and counted cross stitch. After watching some of Karen Puzzles videos, I realized that that’s why I love jigsaw puzzles. I even have fond memories of puzzling since my grandparents would bring 2000 piece puzzles to our beach vacations. I loved sitting down and working with them to put the picture together. Now that I have reawakened this love of puzzles, and their quality has improved, I see myself doing this for a while.

Second, I find immense satisfaction in figuring out the right answer to things as well as progressing towards completion. Jigsaw puzzles, if produced well, contain significant numbers of pieces that fit together in just one particular way. Thus, if you find the spot that a piece fits, you have found the correct answer to that step of the problem. Additionally, placing the piece in its spot brings the puzzler one step closer to completing the picture.

Now I will address the other main topic, why I chose the puzzles I purchased. Since I chose to spend money, make an investment in these puzzles, I wanted them to have significance, specifically a connection to something important to me, something that brings up a fond memory of past travels. Thus, all but one of the puzzles I purchased represent a location to which I have traveled. That last one, Doctor Who postcards, have tangential connection to my love for travel since the image is comprised primarily of postcards with “Greetings from ____” and images from many iconic episodes.

I love putting the images together, building the pictures and remembering the experiences that I gained in that location. The idea of putting together a random image with no personal connection does not excite me unless I have some sort of challenge, like the New York Times cover page puzzle I bought Dad. We worked on it for nearly five hours on a Sunday, five hours that passed in the blink of an eye. Now I want to get puzzles for all of his birthdays, put them together and then assemble them in a carosel he can flip through.

So, I think I have plenty to work on as the days progress. I also know better than to purchase puzzles with a large section of cloudy (and clear) sky like the Paris scene I chose to work on first. More on that to come. I will write at least one more post in this puzzle series.