I hate when blogs start talking about how they were too busy to write a new post. I was busy, but I also have been wanting to update the blog. Unfortunately, I was unable to. I have been in Hong Kong at the 2010 Hong Kong Toy Fair since January 4. You might remember I attended this show last year too and had problems signing in to my blog account.

I had the same problems this year. Very frustrating.

But now I am home and am able to update.

I have really enjoyed hearing from folks about their own family jigsaw puzzle racing traditions. One person wrote to tell me about at their family gathering. As you arrived at their mothers house, she broke folks up into 2 teams. She sends each team to a separate room where there is a 500pc puzzle. They compete to see which team can finish the puzzle first. I sounded like things get very cut throat.

During the HK show this last month, there were times in between appointments where my team was looking for ways to keep busy. They started racing each other using 50pc puzzles. I can not tell you how many races we had during the show. Again, the competition became very cut throat with serious bragging rights going to the winners.

I will post some pictures of our showroom later this week. I will be traveling this week, but will find time in the evenings to post more updates.

Thanks for checking in. If this is your first time visiting, go back in the archives and take a look at how far the Lafayette Puzzle Factory has come in the last year. I was rereading some of the older posts whilie in HK trying to sign in. We really have come a long way.

JP

Better Homes and Garden Magazine gets it.

They have declared January - National Puzzle Month.

From the magazine directly: "Looking to shake that sluggish feeling this month? Give yourself an intellectual workout and dust off a favorite jigsaw puzzle (JP's note: or go buy a new LPF puzzle like Puzzle Collector or Colorluxe). Piecing together a puzzle works both the analytical (left) and intuitive (right) sides of your brain. Puzzles also enhance the capacity for learning and memory."

Lets see if this link works: http://www.bhg-digital.com/bhg/201001?pg=18#pg18

I could not have said it better myself (except I would have mentioned LPF directly). The craftiest retailers know that January is a great month to sell puzzles. The nights are long and the days are cold (the nights are cold too). Great puzzle weather.

I am encouraging everyone to celebrate National Jigsaw Puzzle Month with as much gusto as you can mustard.

Drop me a note and tell me how your are celebrating.

JP

We had fun with some puzzles over the weekend when the family and I were visiting relatives. My daughter and her uncle started to argue over who was better at putting together puzzles. My brother in law (the uncle) is never one to back down from a challenge. Neither is my daughter.

So we found a 100pc puzzle (LPF, of course) and had a contest.

Each person started with the puzzle in the box, out of the bag, and with the lid half way up the base. The clock started when the lid came off. Uncle B went first. My daughter was sent to another room so she could not gleam any hints. This uncle is in his 30's and has 2 kids. He has been doing puzzles with his kids recently. When he was finished his time was a rather slow 20 minutes 28 seconds. He got a little side tracked looking for a final edge piece instead of just moving on to the middle. Apparently, he was convinced the key was to do the edge and work his way in.

My daughter went next. She knew the time to beat, so that was a slight advantage. Her strategy involved flipping the pieces right side up and sorting them into groups by color. It took her a little time to get started, but when she finally got the sorting completed, she was off to the races. She posted a blistering time of 12 minutes 8 seconds.

Others in the family gave it a try as well, but no one else came close to the 12 minute mark.

I wonder if any of you have ever had a puzzle race? It was fun and will probably be part of our get togethers in the future.

Send me your best times or other contest suggestions using puzzles. LPF puzzles, of course.

JP

Merry Christmas!!!

While we enjoy our families and friends, we remember those who are not with us today.

The day is off to a great start. Last night was church and a beautiful dinner. Santa made it overnight and the kids are already trying out their new toys.

I hope everyone who reads this blog has a wonderful day and enjoys all that it brings.

JP

The holidays are right around the corner. Lots of family activities, food, church, and presents.

But LPF has been humming right up all through December and even over the holidays work will not stop. One of the biggest trade shows of the year happens in Hong Kong in January. I will be leaving on Jan 4 for the show. We have redone our catalog, added products, and been busy making appointments for the show. Our showroom will be a the Grand Stanford hotel again. Only this year we have the showroom for 7 days (last year we only had it for 4 days). The extra days reflect the fact we have more appointments this year.

The good news is that most of our work was completed yesterday. Now it is just a matter of making sure it all arrives at the showroom and gets set up. It will take us a whole day just to set up.

So if you are planning on being in Hong Kong the first two weeks of January, drop me a note and lets set up a time for me to show you our lines. We have something for everyone.

JP

Last weekend before Christmas. The mall in town is packed today. Lots of people out and about, even though it is snowing.

We have done all our christmas shopping. Maybe a few little things, but the kids main gifts are bought and will be ready for them come Friday.

My family will be arriving in town on Tuesday evening and then the holidays will really start.

The good and bad news is that I am having a hard time finding LPF puzzles in town. The stock levels are down and it is obvious that people have responded positvely to our puzzles. I just wish we had more on the shelves so everyone who wants one could find one. Don't worry, we are shipping more to help refill shelves after the holidays.

Also, I want to thank all those folks who have written me in the last few weeks with kind words about our puzzles. I really do enjoy hearing from folks. Especially when they tell me a little bit about themselves and why they bought a particular puzzle. I do listen and it helps us as we continue to add to our lines.

Quick explanation - I recently discovered that YouTube is a great source for music. Seems like every song and artist is on there. ITunes is fine if you want to buy a song, but they only let you hear a 30 sec clip of the song. On YouTube you can find the whole song.

Which leads me to this video. I have loved the song currently playing in the background of Cadillacs new commercial. It has a great beat and sound. I found it on YouTube. I is a great song to get your blood pumping. Enjoy.

JP

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MX2FeHjIUF4

It was my birthday yesterday. I love my birthday. Always have. Always will.

The day was particularly good. The kids wished me happy birthday before they left for school. I did some work in the morning. After lunch, I met up with my wife and we did some Christmas shopping and other errands together. For dinner we had Skyline chili on noodles. My favorite! I have been trying to watch what I eat, so it was particularly nice to throw caution to the wind and pig out a bit.

After dinner I went and heard Matt Painter, the coach of the Purdue Mens basketball team speak. He is a very entertaining speaker. His passion for the game of basketball is obvious. He not only can speak about Purdue and the Big Ten, but he is tuned into to all of Div 1 basketball. The man is a basketball junkie. Gene Keady was there too, which made it extra special. The two of them should develop a stand up act and tour the country.

So I wake up this morning feeling a little bit older. But I am also feeling motivated. The future looks bright. I would not change a thing about the previous 42 years. And the next 42 will be even better.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qrriKcwvlY

JP