Cubes and Planks

I have a friend that I have never met. He is Erhan from Turkey, and he has a website showing the numerous puzzles and problems that he has invented. 
Today I learned that he has recently died, and in his memory I am showing you the latest wooden puzzle that I made from his instructions. It is titled "Cubes and Planks" and it is constructed from 9 components, and it is quite hard to assemble.

I found that his instructions for assembly were a little hard to follow, because the orientation of the cube changed which caused some confusion, and also the 9 components needed to have the direction of the grain shown, so that the grain on the assembled individual cubes would be consistently in line. So I have drawn my own solution which addresses these problems and hopefully assists others who want to make one of these puzzles.

The details of the 9 components can be found at his website:-

https://diypuzzles.wordpress.com/2015/01/25/cubes-and-planks/

Autumn

Unseasonly Autumn

We are already into April and we should not be experiencing warm sunny days in the mid 20s during this Autumn.
This scene greeted us today as we went for a walk in the botanical gardens.  The garden beds are all barren of flowers as they wait for the new planting in a couple of months time which will transform the whole place into a mass of colour.  In the meantime, the trees will remain the focal point of this beautiful setting.