One Year Old(er)

I think that's the longest break I've ever had from blogging. At least, since beginning exactly one year ago today.

That's right, Portello is one year old. And hasn't it grown? Such a cutie.

But what have I been doing for this last week, you ask?

Well, I have rekindled my love for the jigsaw. We've been apart for a long time, and . . . there was a lot of catching up to do.

Actually, this rekindling was brought about by two seemingly unrelated things.

The first was a challenge from my lovely wife not to look at Facebook for a whole week. This was achieved (apart from special dispensation on Tuesday to check for birthday messages) but it meant forsaking the two Facebook activities I indulge in regularly . . . playing Scrabulous^TM (aka Scrabble^TM) and doing jigsaws on PuzzleBee^TM.

The other thing was that, serendipitously and before the shakes set in, I received a birthday gift from my parents of three 1000-piece puzzles and a jigsaw case.

And that was just what I needed . . . a large flat vinyl case, padded and velcro-sealed, in which one can comfortably work on a jigsaw, and then keep it closed and unmolested by curious cats when not in attendance.

Of course even while I am in attendance, there's been a certain amount of training required.

Not walking across the puzzle. Not knocking the pieces off the table and watching them curiously as they fall to the floor. Not eating the jigsaw pieces. Not eating the jigsaw case. The usual sort of thing. They're getting the hang of it.

Anyway, here's the case . . . featuring completed puzzle:


The puzzle was very cool, actually. To make it tricky, the picture on the box was not the picture in the puzzle.

The puzzle picture is, in fact, what happens next after the scene on the box.

* * * Spoiler Alert * * *
This is the picture on the box:


And this is the completed puzzle:


Lots of semi-amusing detail in there if you care to look.

Thanks, Mum and Dad.