Very Puzzling Puzzles

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Guess what? It's now the second of April AND we still have winter weather! How could that be? We've had wet snow - whatever that means. Isn't snow always wet?! We're lucky to enter into the forties during the day. That, indeed is a puzzle. And it's one that the perennials and grass just don't understand. They're ready to be fertilised and pampered, not frozen over!




For all you jigsaw puzzle fans, I think you might like our games room. It's just full of jigsaw puzzles. Not that I do them. Puzzles are just too, well, puzzling. And I'm already still puzzling over what to have for dinner tonight, and whether to jump up and down to get some exercise or to go for a walk in the incessant cold weather.



That one above was too big for the table in the gamesroom, so it was done on top of a rug!




There are two puzzles here lying side by side on the table. And one isn't even the right way round! I call that a puzzle. How can anyone do a puzzle when it's turned the wrong way?



I may have solved one puzzle - instead of cooking dinner tonight I think we'll just get take away!

Christmas Lights in Edinburgh

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The Christmas lights in Edinburgh were cheery and enticing. Too bad about the snow, the ice, the slushy mushy stuff, and the frigid temperatures! Actually, if you bundle up in layers the cold isn't too bad. You've got to keep walking, of course, before icicles form in your nostrils!



Actually, the nice thing about the rather odd weather in Edinburgh was that it was easy to take photos. Although there were people out and about there weren't the usual crowds. So, nobody inadvertently meandered in front of me just as I was about to go snap.

There was an ice rink down on Princes Street Gardens. Much as I was tempted to run down the steps and get a better look, I refrained from doing so. What if the steps were icy?! I could slip and stumble and roll all the way down like a giant Humpty Dumpty. People might think I was just a drunken bum, a bag lady, of no importance, and leave me lying in the frigid air.




I still got a nice photo, so that was good.

How lucky not to be travelling to the U.K. right now! Heathrow Airport has had umpteen cancellations and delays the past few days, as had many European airports, including Edinburgh.

I can sit back and gaze on my photos and not worry about lost luggage, closed airports, cancelled trains and other annoyingly annoying events. Mind you, the trip was indeed an adventure. Who doesn't like adventures?!

Snowed In!!

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Have you ever been snowed in? Has the weather been so bad that you don't really want to go out?

It happened to me just last week. I was in Edinburgh, Scotland. Turns out they were having the worst weather in forty years! The airport was closed for a total of four days. Buses and trains were cancelled. People were stranded in their cars for hours and hours as the snow fell and ice accumulated.

I was in a hotel, right down on the Royal Mile, the old part of Edinburgh. At least I had a good view from my room. You can see the roof tops in the first photo. And in the next photo you can see Arthur's Seat, an extinct volcano that overlooks the city.



I still went out for a walk. There were tourists braving the weather as well, up by the castle. Edinburgh always has tourists! There were some local people out and about too, doing Christmas shopping. But there weren't the usual crowds that you find.

I'm so thankful I didn't have to drive, catch a bus, or train, or plane. Travellers simply weren't going anywhere for the first few days of my trip. And I was lucky that I arrived in Edinburgh with just a short delay. The day before my arrival and the day after, the airport was closed due to bad weather.

What a cosy hotel room I had, with nice views.

What's your favorite view?

Signs of the Village

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Sometimes I walk in the village close to where I live. It's flat and has sidewalks, unlike my immediate neighbourhood. It's a cute place to wander around and admire the large, Victorian houses. It's also a good place to enjoy a pleasant lunch.

Several of the local businesses, however, are closing down, or are already closed.



There are many signs like these ones throughout the village.



What's going on? Why are the businesses failing? At the local shopping centers and malls the stores are busy, and people are buying. Maybe the antique and gift stores in the village just didn't offer essential wares that the public need and want?



Maybe the rents are too high? Haven't a clue, economics not being my forte. But, come to think on it, I never have purchased many things in the village shops. I usually just go to the supermarket or the drug store. Now, both of these are still in business. On a positive note, some new enterprises have opened up, and maybe more merchants will be encouraged to establish themselves here.

There are other signs in the village besides all the for lease and for rent ones.
This sign is intended to lure people to come to the village and hopefully shop.



This is a cheery sign.



Pedestrians have the right of way here, something which is attractive to walkers.



Guess we just have to hope that people don't keep on walking right out of the village, and that no more businesses fail.

Who or what is available?!



Maybe success is!

Why do you think so many small businesses are failing?

Signs of the Suburbs

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Here in the suburbs there are so many cars that look just like mine. They may be a different make of car, but they still look like mine. At least that's what it seems when I'm wandering around in a parking lot looking for my car. Where did I park it?
Hmm.

I came up with a solution. I got myself an Ecosse sticker sign and a Scottish flag sticker sign. How many people have these two stickers on their car?! Do you know what 'Ecosse' means in English! Can you guess? It's the name of a country.

Much as I enjoy driving, I also love to walk. I walk around the neighbourhood most days for about two miles. There's a teacher strike just now, and the parents are not at all happy.




You can tell by this sign how annoyed people are.

There's a sign that I pass basically every day when I'm out walking.



Every evening around seven p.m. a weather balloon appears high in the sky. I often wonder where it ends up!

There are other signs in the suburbs. One was waiting on me when I got back home. A sign that Autumn is still here. Still loads of leaves to remove!



At least we back on to the woods, so we can dump the leaves out there.



Things to ponder: What do you think of teachers going out on strike? Do you have lots of leaves still? How do you deal with removing them? What stickers do you have on your car?

Out of Business Stores

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These long summer days here in the suburbs are adorned with butterflies and bonnie flowers. Even the weeds look nice and welcoming.

In the local village, however, people sip on their coffees and teas and bemoan the number of stores closed, gone out of business. They saunter about in sandals and cropped trousers, their shiny toenails flirting with the hot sidewalks.

"Not another store with a 'for rent' sign!"



"What about the lampshade store? Where did it go? I wanted to buy a new lampshade."

"Let's start at one end of the street and start counting. I think last week I counted nine. Nine stores gone out of business. I've never known this to happen before, never. Not in my whole life."

"Oh my. Where's the spray tan place? I swear it was here two weeks ago. What about my coupon? Do you think I can still use it?"

"They say that the parking meters are free on Saturdays. Maybe that will bring more people."

Some of the wealthiest people in the nation live in and around the village, but I guess they're not shopping here.

But, all is not lost. New ventures are sprouting forth, new ideas are floruishing, just like the flowers on the deck, and new enterprises are on the horizon. Evolution in progress.

The future could well be as superb as a butterfly.

Better grasp it before it flies away.

Are there stores going out of business where you live?