Things are crazy at times, stress seems to be coming at me from every side these days and what I need to be able to do sometimes is turn off my brain. I need to stop the wheels from turning and NOT think about the bills needing to be paid, or another doctor’s visit, or hubby’s work problems, or family issues, or any of the myriad of things that can cause me anxiety or sleepless nights.

One way for me to do that is by working on a puzzle. It doesn’t have to be a difficult one, it can be a simple puzzle that takes barely any time at all. But the act of sitting down and using my brain to figure out where the colors and shapes fit together shuts out most stresses and anxiousness if only for a few minutes at a time. It’s an escape, even if only a short one, from the everyday stress-inducing annoyances of life.

Having 5 or 10 minutes to sit down and work on a puzzle is essential for me. When I’m working on a puzzle I get so engrossed in what I’m doing that there’s no extra space in my head for the outside pressures. All of these pieces will end up fitting together somehow and making a beautiful picture and what is required of me is just some time, fine motor skills, and a little brain power.

Even if I’m not feeling well and lying in bed most of the day I can still grab a tray full of pieces and put a small bit of the big puzzle together. It clears my head, it helps me relax, and it makes me happy. Even rearranging the pieces on the trays or condensing from 2 trays to 1 is calming for me in a slightly OCD way, and helps me to get out of my head and turn off my brain.

In short, puzzles are slightly like xanax for me, keeping me calm when the world is upsetting, and giving me a small respite from the pressures of life. As long as I have a little me time – preferably with a puzzle – things should be ok. And if they’re not ok, at least I assembled a pretty picture to look at. 🙂

Is it just me? Sometimes when I finish a puzzle, I have no idea what to start next and no puzzle is the right fit at the right time. When I get into these “puzzle funks” I can start assembling 3 or 4 different puzzles only to put each one away in turn and try to find the one I REALLY want to do. I have no clue why certain puzzles aren’t right at certain times; I have to blame my menopausal brain awash with hormones or lack thereof.

That’s how I’m feeling today. I finished the 1500 piece golf puzzle for hubby and have glued it so it will be suitable for framing. Now I have no idea what comes next; I have already started and stopped sorting 3 different puzzles today! A 2000 piece Ravensburger, a 1000 piece Wasgij, and a 500 piece Dowdle. Why is none of them what I’m looking for at the moment? I even looked at the 3000 piece Ravensburger I have waiting for assembly, but somehow I know that’s not the right puzzle for right now.

I got a bee in my bonnet yesterday and ordered more puzzles, I told myself if the one I’ve been wanting is finally in stock that I’d definitely order it. It was, and then of course I have to spend enough money to get free shipping. 😎 So I ordered a couple of things from my wishlist (2 Heye puzzles), the Colin Thompson shaped lighthouse, and a one puzzle each from two companies I’ve never tried before and am curious to see what the quality is like.

Perhaps I’m not wanting to start another puzzle because the puzzles I’m really looking forward to at the moment are the ones that are getting ready to be shipped? I don’t know, but whatever the reason I currently have no puzzle in progress on any of my boards and no idea which one will be next. 😐

For six months I wrote every day about the puzzle I was working on; it became a habit. For six months I worked on the puzzle every single day, keeping track of how many pieces I was able to add and documenting my progress with pictures. I would get up in the morning (or middle of the night if I wasn’t feeling well) get a cup of coffee and head into the golf/puzzle room to look at the puzzle, start the day’s assembly, or check and see if someone from a new country had looked at my blog. People from 28 different countries have checked out my jigsaw journal, isn’t that amazing?!

When the Disney puzzle was completed there was a sense of loss almost, I no longer had the project to work on and I no longer needed to document my work. There was no longer any chit chat with myself and anyone who reads the blog about how I was feeling, how the day’s progress went, etc. I miss that.

I’ve kept up with the blog, but have only been posting a puzzle every other day because there’s no way I can keep up with a puzzle a day. I have lots of time on my hands but not that much! I have several puzzles completed and the posts already written, but I’m only posting them every other day in case work on a larger or more difficult puzzle takes a lot of time. But I miss sitting and putting down my thoughts about the puzzle I’m working on, or the new fascinating puzzle mom found at the thrift store, or how I’ve gone off my rocker again and bought a bunch of new puzzles. 😉

I tried to only post a completed puzzle every other day, but I’ve decided this morning (up at 2 am 😐 ) that there’s no reason why I can’t just sit down and blog about jigsaw puzzles on days where I haven’t completed a puzzle. There’s plenty of jigsaw jabbering going on in my head so I might as well get it out and put it here in my “journal”. I’m sure it won’t be scintillating or noteworthy to most people, but I’m alright with that. It’s more for me than anyone else really, but if there is a person or two out there who enjoys the jigsaw jawing and jargon you are more than welcome to hang out and read along!

Does that mean I’m adding a sub-hobby to my jigsaw hobby? Or is blogging about jigsaw puzzles a completely new hobby? Does the word “hobby” look weird to anyone else? I think I may need a nap today.