Solving the Puzzle

Believe me I know. My posts have been a bit few and far between the last few weeks. It's a matter of all of the blank spaces that need my attention...soccer, basketball, pumpkin patches, classroom volunteering, design work, hugs, art, bedtime stories, plumbing issues, homework, meals, date nights, dance lessons, laundry, birthdays etc etc.

However, I think I found some answers in a 1926 crossword puzzle book I purchased coming back from St. Louis a few weeks ago. Initially I picked it up because the patterns fascinated me, but as I peeked inside I discovered so much more. "Do's and Don'ts For Solvers" applies to more than crosswords. Click on the photo at the very top to read for yourself.

And then I started to wonder about the first owner of the book. A gal named Nancy who wrote her name in the front. She seemed to have figured out many of the answers, but maybe she peeked at the completed puzzles in the back of the book. Kind of like a home-cooked meal vs. "cheating" with take-out. Does it really matter in the end? Isn't the point to not stress so much over one problem, but move forward in the puzzle? "Don't spend so much time with the long words unless you are sure of them. They will appear when the short ones have been solved." Shortcuts taken to complete the less important tasks allow us to move ahead and spend more time on the bigger and more important challenges we face. Perhaps some spaces will be left blank for the time being. "When you have written in all the words you are sure of, you will have plenty of clues for the unknowns."

"If you are hopelessly stuck try another puzzle. Inspiration sometimes waits for a return engagement." Maybe tonight one of the short answers is spelled P-I-Z-Z-A so you can solve and complete one of the more important answers.