I promised you something easier for Macro Monday this time, didn’t I? And I’m glad I did, because I stayed up till 3am watching the Superbowl last night so I’m not exactly firing on all cylinders myself!

So there it is. After that fiendishly difficult puzzle last week (the absinthe spoon, if you remember), I present you with a very ordinary, everyday object. One that you’ll find in most kitchens – at least in the UK, USA, and New Zealand. Never having travelled outside those areas myself, I cannot say for sure, but I suspect that this item is fairly widespread across the globe.

Instantly recognisable, seen as a whole, this may be too easy for you clever people, but I’m hoping it will be fun anyway!

As usual, check back tomorrow evening (UK time) for the answer. I’ll add a link to the big picture at the bottom of this post, and also the answer will turn up in the comments at some point. And thank you all for playing!

Well, not so much Mr Sid, as Mr Sid’s footprints.

I didn’t set out to adopt a tripod.  I just went to the kennels to look at the dogs because I was missing my beloved greyhounds so much after losing them both within weeks.  I wanted to be around joyful, happy hounds, just for an hour or so.  I wasn’t ready to adopt again, I thought, but I was desperate for greyhound company.

And when S opened the door and her current residents bounded forth, Sid stole my heart.

I didn’t notice that he only had three legs to start with, because he was just as fast, and just as bouncy as the others, but as he turned to go back into the house for a drink of water, I did notice (with a little shock) that he wasn’t quite complete.  Of course, by then, it was too late, because his beautiful face, and the beautiful soul that shone out from his eyes, had already reached out and grabbed me. Later when OH met Sid, he said it was the same way for him, and he didn’t even want to look at any of the other dogs. Sid, he said, was the one.

And it’s funny, because he’s been with us for over six months now, and we’re so used to his bouncing hop that we often forget that he has a leg missing.  There are still times when we look at him and it hits us, with that same little shock, that he only has three.  There are even times when I see him get up and walk across the room and I think ‘why is my dog limping?’

I took that photo up there in the last light snowfall we had.  I was bringing him home up our icing-sugared driveway when I noticed the pretty little trail he was leaving in the untouched snow.

Sid isn’t untouched.  He’s had his hard knocks.  But he’s still beautiful – inside and out.

For more Friday Finding Beauty posts, visit Claudia at Dipity Road.

ABC Wednesday once more, and there are so many ‘C’s to include – in fact, it’s been a little difficult to decide which ones to leave out!   But first a little puzzle for you.   Where is the ‘C‘ in that picture up there?

Those that have greyhounds will know the answer of course, because the Princess Renie is demonstrating a classic pose known as the ‘cockroach’!  Otherwise known as ‘roaching’, it’s a pose beloved of greyhounds* all over the world.

Yes, greyhounds certainly do love their comfort.  And to this end, without any encouragement at all, they will adopt the use of cushions.

Notice that not only has the Princess laid her elegant head on a convenient cushion, but she has one gently supporting her hind leg, too – and another behind her head, should she decide to roll over and roach.

She isn’t the only one to love cushions.  Jack had a knack for making himself comfortable with them, too.

Aaah, such contentment!  A comfy cushion to cuddle. What more could a dog want?  Well, actually, my little Pirate Jack had another great love in his life.  He was a playful little fellow, and adored his yellow toys. In particular …

Mr Yellow Chicken!  He’d chase that thing around the house, and even wander up the garden with it clutched in his jaws!  Sometimes, he’d even use Mr Chicken as a cushion!

You see, though it used to be thought that dogs could only see in black and white, and shades of grey, this isn’t quite true.  We now know that they do have limited colour vision.  It is poor, compared to ours, though, and the colours they see best are blue at one end of the spectrum, and yellow at the other.  So you see, if you put a red toy on a green carpet, it would be hard for a dog to spot that colour.  But if you put a nice bright yellow toy on a green carpet, well then, it would become quite clear.  Jack had poor sight anyway, being elderly.  He had cataracts, as well as an inflammatory eye condition called episcleritis, so the yellow toys were very helpful to him.

Jack loved all toys though, when he could find them.  Sometimes, he’d cart them all off to his bed.

Quite a collection, huh?  You’ll notice that apart from that red one, they’re all fairly high-visibility toys.  You’ll also notice that one of his favourites – this time the yellow duck – is tucked up under his chin.  Aw, bless!

Renie did play from time to time, but mostly she was the Princess, and confined herself to a few minutes activity here and there before climbing back into her chair.

She loved to be cosily covered with a blanket, when it was cold.  And see that?  Looks like that one was taken at Christmas!

Sometimes, the Princess liked to be completely covered!

And yes, she often slept with her mouth open.  Charming, isn’t it?

So, where was I?  Oh, yes.  The Princess and the Pirate were very good companions.  Here they are in the car -

Quite possibly on their way back from Central Park.

And here they are in the kitchen, companionably watching me cook.

In those days they were quite comfortable walking on the tile, but they both became concerned about it as they got older.

So, what to leave you with today?  Hmm … well, it seems that Sid hasn’t had a look-in, so how about a picture of Sid …

… looking cute!

* And not only greyhounds, of course. I know that other dogs do it, too, and so did our cats!

I don’t know about you people, but I had great fun with last week’s Macro Monday puzzle, partly (no doubt) because I foxed you all! Mwahahahaha!

Well, all except Squirrel Queen, and two others who were very close, anyway. This week I have another quite difficult puzzle for you – at least, I think it is – but I promise I’ll be kinder next time. After all, it’s no fun at all if you don’t feel you have a fighting chance of guessing, and I don’t want you all running off and deserting me, besides which, half the fun of setting a puzzle in the first place is to provide some entertainment for my readers.

So bear with me. I struggled a little to think of something this week, because at the moment I’m struggling to think at all. I’m no longer stuck in the 30 second loop, but I’m a long way from being back to normal. When I saw this, I realised it would make a great picture, but until I was nearly done I didn’t realise that it might be really quite difficult for some, impossible for others.

Take a look. It’s something I found in my kitchen, although it would have been equally at home in the dining room, or even in certain places of recreation and relaxation outside the home entirely.

Let’s see … what clues can I give you that won’t give it away entirely? Well, I’m betting very few of you actually have one of these at home, but if you do, it will be pretty much this size and shape but maybe it will have a different pattern of holes. Those of you who don’t have one might never have seen one – and might not know such a thing even exists – so I’m going to give you two further picture clues showing different angles. If you’re one of these people, and you’re really stuck, you might want to go here.

And if you still have no idea, there’s one more – but this is the very last clue I’m going to give you. Okay?

Now, off you go and wrack your brains, and then come back and start guessing! As usual, I’ll be back here tomorrow to add a link to a picture of the whole thing, and I’ll let you know in the comments what the answer is. Good luck!

Well, here we are on Tuesday evening and no-one has guessed this one correctly – except for Teresa who has seen this item for herself here in my kitchen, and Kat, who hasn’t seen mine, but who definitely knows what it is because she’s seen one on film at the very least – and in the hands of a naked Johnny Depp* too! Thank you, ladies for keeping quiet and not spoiling the game!

So, I guess the rest of you would like to know what it is, huh? OK, then. Go here, and all will be revealed, including the set-up I used to photograph it.

Well, perhaps not quite all, because some of you still won’t know what it is. If you are still curious and/or frustrated, try this link.

Thank you all so much for playing! I promise next week’s image will be a more recognisable item!

* Johnny Depp played Inspector Fred Abberline in the movie ‘From Hell’. At one point, Fred is seen drinking absinthe in the bathtub. Of course, he’s also laced his absinthe with laudanum AND been smoking opium, neither of which are a recommended part of the absinthe ritual, so it’s not surprising that he passed out cold. Do not try this at home!