Ipp 41 Houston Texas

You know the drill.  I'm not allowed to say where the IPP is being held other than the city, but some folks have already posted the location.  Different rules for different people I guess.  We were lucky and able to check in at 2 when we arrived.  We headed straight up to the room and ran into Marti.  She's right across the hall from us so we've seen a lot of her.  

We brought our luggage in, I unpacked and we headed down to the lobby to chat with the early arrivers.

We were supposed to go to dinner with Bill and Scarlet, but it was a (mostly) fish sushi dinner and that just didn't appeal to me.  George and I have been maintaining our juice diet and the thought of fish was enough to make me sick even before I ate it.  Instead we made an even bigger mistake and had diner in the hotel restaurant with Marti.  The ribs were what we opted for, and it should have not even been on the menu.  It tasted like someone dropped an entire bottle of black pepper on it.  The waitress kept saying it was spicy when we complained.  Spicy I can handle. A ruined tongue I cannot.  That was an insult to the rib.  George was smart and made a salad out of the left over guacamole.  Marti and I suffered.

The next morning was just a day to relax and chat with friends, and boy did we.  We had a puzzle box workshop with Kelly Snache in the afternoon.  George signed up for it, but I built it.  We sat at the table with Allan Stein, Jules Constantine, Louis Toorenburg, among others.  We had so much fun laughing at ourselves with the mistakes we were making.  In the end though, we all had semi-workable puzzle boxes.

When this was over, George went up for a nap and I headed to Daiso.  That was a bust.  I did buy some chocolate for the family up north and some grapefruit drink for George and I but really, they had nothing.  It was a sad little store.  I did however get my Lego passport stamped when I visited the lego store and I found a supercharger and filled up the car.  

We had juice for dinner and continued to chat with friends and puzzle away the evening.

I helped George set up his 3D printer and we made up the rest of the Roxanne and George figures for my exchange puzzle.  He also made about 4 or 5 bucolic cubes to bring to family up north when we go.  Marti got a mini lesson in how to set it up.

Friday morning I headed out to yet another Daiso up north of us.  This one did not disappoint.  I was able to get great new kitchen gadgets!  I also hit Barnes and Noble to pick up a few puzzle books we didn't have (Murdle Most Puzzling volumes 1-3) and got a bit more OJ and milk for our breakfast.  When I got back to the hotel it was time for Rob's workshop to make yet another puzzle box.  This time I was with Patrick, and Haym.  

Mat and Lee gave us all a bit of help.  As I was going through the solve steps, I managed to have one piece go flying off my box so Rob himself came over and rescued me.  He glued it up, clamped it, and I hope it works when we get home.  

The Founder's reception was held in a BBQ joint a few blocks down the road from the hotel and we all piled in busses to head over.  Have I mentioned the heat and humidity here?  No, well it's hot. At one point earlier today I noticed the outside temperature was 105!  The BBQ was massive.  3 types of meat, one of which was a half a chicken! The biggest loaded baked potato I have ever seen, mac and cheese, and a tomato salad.  They aren't big on vegetables here I guess.  Sadly, I forgot to take photos of the meal.  There was enough food on that plate to feed George and I for a week at least.  I'm pretty sure everyone enjoyed it.  Jerry introduced the new IPPers, but the noise from the fan was so loud, where I was standing I couldn't hear a thing.  As it was Jerry's birthday, the band played a song and all sang along. A few minutes later they announced a bus going back to the hotel and the joint emptied out.  I was told later the usual suspects stayed behind, listened to the music and enjoyed the drinks and company.  I was also told a beer was $5 vs. a $21 glass of wine in the hotel. 

When we got back there was the design competition room to visit.  I spent a good hour with one of the guys from a puzzle company we all know and love and tried to sort out a few puzzles.  We also picked a couple to analyze for bringing to market at a future date.

I retired semi-early as George had already gone to bed and I was missing my emotional support human.  2 hours away from him and I get antsy.  

Stay tuned for IPP exchange and the puzzle party.

In the heart of the country

Because we saw Perry at Tanner's house, we opted to not meet him at his house near Dallas.  He very kindly sent us photos of his workshop anyway!  Thank you Perry.

Our first stop after seeing Tanner was in Oklahoma to see Rob Yarger and Mark McCallum. Sorry, I know I spelled that wrong. Anyway, we drove for 6 1/2 hours to get there around 2pm.  I don't know if I made a mistake on the distance, or if traffic was heavier than normal.  Anyway, Rob met us in the driveway and we had a wonderful tour of his workshop. He even showed me the soap stains on the ceiling.  

We went into the house and got to see Rob's puzzle collection.  It is small, but very precious.  Every puzzle in here was a gift from a fellow puzzler.  

Mark showed us a number of puzzles he has been working on and gave us a gift of one. Rob showed us his latest project, but I'm not allowed to show it. It's a beauty though.

George spent a great deal of time working on a puzzle while the rest of us chatted.

Jenny even showed us her doll collection!  OMG!  I've heard of rooms like that but have never seen one.  This was amazing!  Totally full of dolls from floor to ceiling.

I wanted to be in Sterling Kansas by nightfall so we had to leave around 5.  

Sadly, I was exhausted and we didn't make it.  I stopped for the night an hour away from Rob's and passed out.  

The next morning we woke up at 7 to go to our friends in Kansas.  That didn't work out as I wanted it to. Of course I let George sleep in then we had breakfast, then we messed up the time and before we knew it, it was 11:30.  

Rod and Merry are a couple we met on our Around The World cruise.  We truly enjoyed their company and were thrilled when they said we could come and visit with them.  

They have a truly beautiful old victorian house which Rod is fixing up by himself.

The price they paid for it was an absolute steal!  I'm envious.  Not of the location, it's too cold for me, but of the home.  My photos don't do it justice. 

Rob made their front door and the coffered ceiling.  They have an old fashioned tin ceiling in the kitchen which he bought from a local store and installed himself.  The house has a total of 23 leaded glass windows.

To do all of this work, Rod of course has to have a workshop.  He humored us and took us into the basement to see it.  

He also repairs clocks and has a workshop area dedicated to that hobby.  

He even took us up into his attic to see his model train. This is a man who never slows down!

We went on a tour of the local area and had a few good lunches while we were there.  Merry is a fantastic cook and made us two lovely dinners.  Now this last part is a bit odd.  I'm not a SOAP by any means, and knitting and quilting, and that other girly stuff doesn't do anything for me, but I had to add these photos of a quilting shop we went to.  It is in the middle of Kansas in a town 8 miles from any other town and it is impressive!

We awoke Saturday morning at 6:30 after a truly short visit to continue our journey. On to Illinois and a visit with my family.