Before Christmas, we chatted a bit about traditions.  One loosely held tradition in my family is the Christmas jig saw puzzle.  As a kid, we would always have a puzzle to work on during the winter break.  It was fun to have something to do when "bored" with everything else.  The puzzle would be set up on the dining room table or a card table so that we could sit down for a few minutes whenever we wanted, and put a few pieces in.

I have continued to have a Christmas puzzle around the house, however, I am usually the primary person to assemble them.  My daughter-in-law also likes to do puzzles, so I have been giving them a puzzle each year for them to have at their house.  Usually the puzzles go together quickly - and are assembled by the time the Christmas tree is taken down.  DIL complained about the puzzles being too easy one year, so the next year I gave them one that was a "bit more challenging".  This puzzle had no edge pieces, it had a picture on both sides of the piece and, just for extra measure, there were 3 EXTRA pieces!  Now, we've done puzzles with no edges before, we've done puzzles with pictures on both sides before.  Not a problem, but combining those features apparently was a bit more than they could handle.  They did complete the puzzle....... in late February!!

So, this year, they gave me a Christmas puzzle to assemble.  It was pure revenge.  This puzzle was a picture of a 4 staff conductors score of music.  Black and white, 1000 pieces, with repeating music.  AAARRRGGGHHH!!!!  In all my years of assembling jig saw puzzles, this one was the toughest.  ....... and NO ONE would help.  So there I sat.  Day after day, night after night.  Slowly putting in one piece, then another.  A dozen pieces in an evening was not unusual.  There was nothing to work from!  The picture on cover of the box was inaccurate - there was more to the puzzle than shown on the cover, so I was working "blind" on some of it.

My perserverence has paid off.  I FINALLY finished the puzzle.  It is DONE!  and I did it all by myself.  Not one piece was put in by anyone else.  I may never do another jig saw puzzle again. .......... and my son and DIL WILL be getting this one back.  and they WILL assemble it....... by themselves.          

Whew!  Now I can take the card table down and put the living room back together.  It has never taken this long to finish a puzzle.  But it does feel good to know I did it.  

Hooray!

It sounds like they tried their best, but it's not easy to beat a determined mastermind!

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Ok my first non intro. post ! Bit wild I know but it did strike me if you wanted to even things up a bit, why not try using a close up high res. pic of your own hair, then (secretly !!) build your own jig saw puzzle especially for them as a present for next Christmas ? No edges etc. plus all the awkward extras you can think of.  

Then see how long it takes you to finish it, so as you can compare with their efforts afterwards !

Finally market it on Long Locks Salon for posterity !!  

For what it's worth ?