Wednesday, October 22, 2008

ABC Wednesday - N is for Necessity, the Mother of Invention

Y'all know Mama loves to do crossword puzzles. She subscribes to two of the little magazines. Being almost 83-years-old and left-handed, she has a huge need for the spine of said magazines to be pliable, to open back so that she can get to the spaces to write in her solutions.

I'll never forget the first time I heard her hammering away, in the kitchen. "What are you hittin'?" I asked. "My puzzle book," she answered. She's done it every time that the book proves itself to be too tightly glued for her comfort. I thought y'all would enjoy a series of photos depicting the process, blow by blow.

Inside ...
mama_hammer1
Outside ...
mama_hammer2
And a lot more inside, up and down the spine ...
mama_hammer3

mama_hammer4

mama_hammer5

mama_hammer6

mama_hammer7

mama_hammer8

Checking ...
mama_hammer9

mama_hammer11

She doesn't hit her fingers, just the puzzle book. Amazing! And she always does this during the day so as not to disturb any neighbors.

21 comments:

AphotoAday said...

Oh those whacky grandmothers...

Mine died twenty or thirty years ago at the age of 99 and 11/12ths... She was a whiz at crossword puzzles -- but could write with either hand, so I never saw her hammering her puzzle books...

Bear Naked said...

A very clever choice for the letter N on ABC Wednesday.

Nice photos of her Hammering Hands.

Bear((( )))

gogouci said...

I love the photo series. Awesome subject matter, lighting and a little action too.

Anonymous said...

She has beautiful hands. They remind me of my mother.

Richard Lawry said...

OK,you win the prize for the most memorable post of this weeks ABC Wednesday.

An Arkie's Musings

photowannabe said...

As Don said...what a whacky Grandma. Fun choice for the letter N.

Jane Hards Photography said...

Totally mad post, but brilliant.o

Leslie: said...

This is TOO funny! I do crosswords and sometimes buy those books, too. And even as a right-hander I find it annoying how tightly they're bound. I think I'm going to do what your Mom does and get that hammer out! LOL

Troop 1309 said...

That is a great idea! Nice photos!

Neva said...

Lynette....I was laughing while I read this!!! Necessity and all that....what a hoot! I am glad she has found a way to make those books workable for her!!!

DeniseinVA said...

My dear mother-in-law loved her crossword puzzles. These are great photos and good on your Mom for being so inventive to make the process easier for her to do her crosswords. Necessity definitely is the mother of invention.

brian stout said...

very nice photo series, lynette! my grandma's 82nd bday as yesterday (10-21), and she LOVES these puzzle books too... she can tell you pretty much any 3,4 or 5 letter word for any of those clues! =)

~tanty~ said...

I love crossword puzzles too.
Very nice photos.

Jim Klenke said...

See, a hammer can fix anything.

Anonymous said...

I laughed at this, I think it's a great idea hammering away at a puzzle book! Lovely!

Steve Buser said...

Lynette, I am still laughing. I think she missed her calling as a carpenter.

How does the saying go? "give a grandmother a hammer and everything becomes a nail."

Chuck Pefley said...

Peculiar way to do a crossword puzzle :))

Anonymous said...

Good for Mama! I hate books that won't open properly too, but I've never thought of taking a hammer to them!

Excellent! LOL!

Katney said...

It's a wonder what we will think of when we need to!

sonia a. mascaro said...

Great post! Your Mom is very, very creative!

Kim from Hiraeth said...

My favorite post of the week! Marvelous photography, wonderful subject!

Bravo!