I didn’t get to do any work on the dollhouse yesterday because I came to the conclusion that I wanted a different width for the floorboards. That wood should be arriving sometime today and I suppose I’ll start in on that over the weekend. But I did conclude that I need to sort through all the crap on my desk and clean things up a bit, so that’s on the docket for today.

I did finish this:

It’s called A Night at the Opera  and it was difficult and fun.

Don loves this one.

Sometimes I encounter a piece that clearly belongs to another puzzle, even though this puzzle was new and never opened. This is the one that was in this particular box:

And I wonder, what new puzzle owner will find he’s missing this exact piece?

I finished The Moving Toyshop, which I enjoyed. I’m not a big reader of classic British mysteries, as a rule. I’m not sure I’d read another Edmund Crispin, but who knows? He certainly knew how to weave an almost unsolvable plot. I had no idea “whodunit” until the end. The writing is smart and witty. Somehow, though, this particular section of the mystery genre is slow going and somewhat tedious for me.

Now to choose what’s next: Mrs Tim Gets a Job  or A Chelsea Concerto?  A Chelsea Concerto  is nonfiction and written by an artist who lived in the Chelsea section of London during WWII. I’ll see what my mood indicates later today.

Things I’ve been thinking about lately:

The Young People’s Concerts  television series of the fifties/sixties, conducted and narrated by the brilliant Leonard Bernstein. As a child, I loved them and never missed a performance. I’ve watched some clips lately and heavens, they were wonderful! Bernstein was, in addition to his genius as a composer, conductor and writer, a born teacher.

Being able to dial a number on our rotary dial phone and find out what the weather forecast for the day was or what the time (at the tone) was. I sort of miss those days. I think our local weather number (in the Detroit area) was WE-21212.

Calling information (411?) to ask a human being on the other end of the line what the phone number was for so-and-so. I’d often have short chats with the operator. Miss that, too.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

Finished.

You’d think this puzzle would have been easier than the Piano Lesson, but in some ways it was harder. Of course, the entire process was hampered by my back problems. The back is getting better, by the way. It will stay that way if I remember to be careful and manage my puzzle time – and refrain from sitting there for hours.

I neglected to take a picture of the box for the next puzzle project, but I’ll share it with you on tomorrow’s post.

Another lovely sunny day today. Don is going to retrieve the stockings full of salt (or maybe the salt has melted and they’re just empty stockings?)  from the gutter because it’s going to rain Saturday and Sunday. We don’t want them clogging up the works.

Exciting, right?

We’re watching a series on Amazon Prime –  A French Village. It’s all about a village that is occupied by the Nazis in WWII. It was recommended to us by a friend. It premiered in 2009, so it’s several years old, but we’re hooked. It’s really compelling and Don, especially, is fascinated by that time in history.

I’m enjoying The Moving Toyshop  by Edmund Crispin. Crispin is considered one of the stars of the golden age of British mysteries. He writes whodunits with wonderfully eccentric characters and has a wicked sense of humor, as well.

Other than that, I’m deleting tons of photos from my laptop, which is an ongoing process. And I’m trying to figure out why my iPhone won’t turn on sometimes, even when it’s charged. So far, and it’s only happened twice, if I plug it into my laptop after unsuccessfully trying to boot it up, it turns on immediately.

I don’t need a problem with my phone during this lockdown. There is no way I’m heading to an Apple store, the nearest of which is over an hour away from our house. And in a mall. Wish me luck.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.