I couple of years ago I ran across “Cross & Glory” which, admittedly, had a bit of a scary name, but they said it was about England …. okay. The images were fun, and I bought three puzzles — “Petals & the Midnight Cat”, “Fantastical Treehouse Escape”, and “Caribbean Treasure Hunt”. When I got them I realized pretty quickly that they were AI-generated art, and I just could never make myself do them, so they filled out my backlog. Yesterday, I pulled out “Fantastical Treehouse Escape”, decided to do it and pass it on. The image is not a super easy solve, because of the numerous repeating elements. The puzzle quality is — well, it’s solveable, but not high quality. Thin crisp cardstock-like cardboard, with a very basic strip cut. I sorted, assembled most of the border, and began assembling elements, before heading to bed.
Overnight, my brain did some work. Why am I solving this puzzle if it’s making me happy? Sparking joy, as it were? I have a lot of other puzzles I’m actually looking forward to doing.
So this morning, I disassembled it & boxed it up, abandoning it! All my completionist feathers are bristling, but no — I am reclaiming my time.
(I’m also tossing the very similar pirate ship puzzle into the giveaway pile, but keeping “Petals and the Midnight Cat” — for now.)
