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Testing the New Website

Here we go. During the next coming days you will often see the site down for maintenance and going back and forth through different changes and variations. It is because I am testing the different modules to be sure that everything keeps working. I hope the transition will not bee too bumpy. Feedback and suggestions are highly appreciated at [email protected]. (Photograph by vagawi).

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Raúl

This post is difficult to write, and perhaps I shouldn't write it at all. However, now that the site is changing, it is important to provide some background on the genesis of Rare Puzzles and a reference for the future. The core and heart of Rare Puzzles is in this post. In March of 2015, my brother Raúl was diagnosed with Klatskin tumor, a very uncommon type of cancer and extremely rare for patients in their 40's. It was inoperable and incurable. I was then working and living in Los Angeles, CA and decided to come back to Spain and be close to my brother for whatever time left he had. I quit my job, sold almost everything I owned, and took a flight back to Madrid. I am sure that most of you have been touched by cancer one way or another. I have learned that cancer doesn't leave any family untouched, so you probably know what it looks like. Raúl's cancer started to set our schedules, our routines, and our plans. Patients and caregivers. I knew I wanted to be there 24/7. I didn't want to have a job schedule. I wanted to be able to pick up my car keys at any moment and drive my mom to or from...

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Selling your Puzzles

The site will open for members to sell their own puzzles soon. I have been doing a lot of research in order to decide what type of software would do the work. Although the platform will remain the same, the appearance of the site is going to change. I hope it will be for the better. What this means is that other users will be able to open their own "stores" at Rare Puzzles, list their own items, set their own prices, and ship to whatever countries they wish. There will be some initial restrictions though: Members will need previous approval through a simple request form. Products listed will be reviewed for approval as well, at least in the beginning. Only Factory Sealed and Sealed Bag puzzles will be listed for now. Only out of catalog puzzles will be listed. It will be something similar to listing them on Ebay, but without insertion fees, without time limitations, and for half of Ebay's commissions. The payment preferred method will still be PayPal, since it provides the best protection for buyers and sellers. Terms and Conditions pages will be inserted covering all these details. And there will be some challenges, like creating highly customizable shipping options, or dealing with currency. However, we will work it out. Suggestions and ideas will always be...

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Life is Too Short…

... to count pieces of used puzzles. I recently received a beautiful card beautifully written from a friend and former customer, with an indeed beautiful photograph titled Florence under the Snow, Paris, 1950, by French photographer Édouard Boubat. It was a nice and elegant touch that I truly appreciated. Among the smart things that my friend wrote, there was a small footnote: "Life is too short to count pieces of used puzzles". He was referring to the verification process of every used puzzle listed at Rare Puzzles. It made me think that it was about time to introduce some of the changes that were planned. Starting next week Rare Puzzles will allow users to list and sell their own puzzles on the site. More details coming soon.    

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