Illustration: Life, the Puzzle

At the Stave puzzle factory in Vermont, 12 employees keep busy turning out new and cleverer jig-saw puzzles. A few years ago, as a joke for April Fool's Day, they produced a puzzle called "Five Easy Pieces." The joke was that no matter who put the puzzle together, there was always one piece that wouldn't fit. This prank caused a gigantic uproar. Eventually the company bought back all 30 copies of the fake puzzle from frustrated customers. They should have called the puzzle "Life," for in life there is always at least one piece that doesn't fit.