Activated

Remember a few weeks ago when I mentioned that I was working on a puzzle? I had this strangely prophetic thought:

I'm a little worried about what will happen when I go to bed and the poltergeists are activated, but maybe they'll leave it alone. Fingers crossed.

Well. I had the audiobook of Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows and some time when I was supposed to be doing something else, so I got quite a bit of the puzzle done. All of the edges were in place, the boat was pretty much done, and I was starting to work my way inward.

Then one morning I came out and part of the puzzle was rumpled, as if a cat had skidded to a stop on it. I smoothed it out, but I couldn't find one of the edge pieces. I looked on the floor and didn't see it, so I thought it was somewhere on the table where I just wasn't noticing it.

Right.

Then a few days later I was in the kitchen and saw this happening:

Oh, how cute, she's playing with the loose pieces. But then:

She's not just checking it out, she's tearing it apart. And then I caught her in the act of walking off with a piece in her mouth:

To recap, she's taking the puzzle -- this puzzle that I spent hours trying to put together -- completely apart and stealing the pieces away.

In one way it's the pushme-pullye of puzzles; I put it together and then she takes it apart so I can put it together again. I'm saving all kinds of money here. But my chances of finishing this are not great since I'm not sure what Gin has done with the pieces she's taken. Worse, I caught the big dog with a piece in his mouth yesterday, so it looks like the pet sabotage crew is complete.

The good news is that this is the first time Gin has felt comfortable enough to play while I've been around, so I guess that offsets the fact that she's just a complete jerk.

A Message From The Big Dog

This is Just to Say

I have eaten
the persimmons
that were in the ivy

and now
I need to go
outside
to poop RIGHT NOW

And also
to check in the ivy again
in case
another has fallen

- The Big Dog

(with profound apologies to William Carlos Williams)

New Year

I started the new year off right by sleeping in, running four miles (with an average pace just a hair over 11 min/mile, which is speedy for me), then working on the jigsaw puzzle for most of the day. I suppose I could have been a tad more productive, but I'm going to add 1000 words to my current novel before I quit for the day, so that should count for something.

Progress.

I also signed up for a couple of writing classes (space opera, and literary tips) and a reading aloud class. The prices were low and I can always use new tips and tricks.

Sadly I have to go back to work tomorrow, but at least it's a two-day week, and then a weekend to recover.

Another year of Holidailies done and dusted! I always enjoy reading everyone's entries, and I appreciate the people who keep it up all year. With any luck I'll do a better job blogging this year!