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the big orange house
Summerside, PE
902-439-4562

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hindsight is 2020...a review

December 31, 2020 Arlene Giddings

there is a part of me that feels
like maybe it’s wrong
to do a review of 2020…
that 2020 has left a sour taste for
so many people…

i am a bit of a pollyanna-personality though.
:)

it’s just in my nature.
even the year my marriage ended,
i did a year end review
and was able to focus on the positives
so i guess i should be ok with
a pandemic.
heh.

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Every year, I reread my
journals, blog, facebook posts and instagram…
(and, not gonna lie, I catch myself thinking
that someone should take my internet away
many, many times during this exercise).

GEEK GIRL 2020 HIGHLIGHT REEL

♥ I read 31 books! My goal was 30 so I am ahead of the game albeit by a tiny margin,
but still…and one of the books was a computer science text book but I read it cover to cover
so it counts!

♥ Speaking of computer science, I passed my first course with 84% and plenty of tears,
cursing, frustration and questioning myself.

♥ I turned 50! and had a party complete with fireworks (and a stern warning not to light them myself…for good reason), McDonald gift cards for Happy Meals, lots of laughter, hugs and candy and my brother and partner-in-crime told me::

♥ they were taking me to CABOT TRAIL as part of my birthday present!! It was so great! I was able to cross something big off my bucket list AND spend some concentrated time with my niece and nephew who have learned that I am both amusing AND annoying on a road trip. Heh.

♥ After a lot of manual labor, back cramps and cursing, I was able to complete the yard clean up. It only took at least 43 yard bags and a dumpster, but I got it done. Other big orange house accomplishments included fixing the broken wheel on the lawn mower ONLY TO HAVE ANOTHER WHEEL IMMEDIATELY SHATTER, spray foam which resulted in a very artistic sculpture- y display but also kept the ants out, and a garden that produced roughly 60 billiondy tomatoes.

♥ Creatively, I sold some cards, paintings and a little book that someone asked me to put together. I am not gonna lie…that one pushed me HARD out of my comfort zone but the recipient was happy with the final result and that’s what matters. I also got out for lots of adventures with the camera and bought a new phone…JUST for the camera. AND I had a photo shared by CBC…not just CBC PEI (sorry, CBC PEI, I get excited about that, too) but the BIG CBC…like…CBC!!! :) I also built a smurf display!

the photo shared by the big CBC!!  :)

the photo shared by the big CBC!! :)

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♥ I watched all the Star Wars movies and all the Marvel movies! I joined a book club and even
went to some of the meetings! I started a photography club at work (pre-COVID) and started a book trading group with a friend in an effort to let go of some of my possessions. I also started an accountability group with a friend but again…COVID foiled our plans.

♥ I went snowshoeing, also got so lost in Bonshaw that I had to ask 4 grown ups to lead me out..I survived the gruesome shellfish foot injury of the summer of 2020 where I pretty much had my foot amputated (ok…it required a muppets band aid on it but still….I could have died.) I also accepted a marriage proposal from an internet scammer who thought I was a coal miner with 7 children…until I couldn’t give him two to three thousand dollars for foodstuff for his son…heh. Takes all kinds.

All in all, 2020 was not a bad year for me.

And honestly, I am hopeful for 2021.
I’m going into it with big plans, goals and ideas…
world domination blueprints and a weird sense of humor
just like I always do.

Happy New Year…thanks for sticking with me
as long as you have. I am always surprised that
this little scribbling I do in the teeny tiny quiet corner
of the internetsphere gets any readers at all…
so I greatly appreciate you. ♥♥♥

I hope 2020 was not too painful for you
and that 2021 brings you good things…and candy. :)
(mostly cause I think you are nice…
and that you will probably share with me….heh)

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In grateful, ignite2020, it's a smurfy world, the world of marvel Tags 2020, ignite2020, 2020 year in review, looking back, grateful, proud of me
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the world can also be sweet... (a sappy sunday post)

June 7, 2020 Arlene Giddings

i have been meaning
to write a blog post about this
all week
but time kept
getting away from me,
as it often does.

last weekend,
i got a fb message from a friend
telling me that she knew someone
who was selling some smurfs.

(Note: this is not an odd message
for me to get. Haha. I actually get
things like this pretty frequently
& love that people think of me
when they see this stuff, but I digress…)

normally, they are smurfs i have or
newer smurfs which is still pretty exciting
but this…
this was different.

i didn’t have these smurfs
AND THERE WERE
LITTLE TINY MUSHROOM HOUSES!
and…
YOU CAN OPEN THE DOORS
TO THE LITTLE TINY MUSHROOM HOUSES.

i will be honest.
i wanted them all.
but…i am a grown up
and sometimes grown ups have to
suck it up and settle for a little less
than what they really want
in the name of stupid bills and responsibility
and blah-dididy blah blah-blah.

so…
i said i would definitely take the houses
(cause…did i tell you? THE DOORS OPEN!)
and the baby smurf with the teddy bear.

then i went for a walk.

my friend said she had a friend
that was coming to summerside
& would drop the smurfs off in mailbox
(also not a strange occurrence…heehee)

later that day, i find that cute little red & blue
box in my mailbox…
WITH ALL THE SMURFS
and the HOUSES WITH THE DOORS THAT OPEN
in it.

i am not gonna lie…
i squealed out loud (and scared the dog)
and might have jumped up and down a little
and immediately texted my friend
to ask what she was doing!!
and to get her email address so I could etransfer…

and she just said…
pay it forward.

every day i am so incredibly grateful
for the people in my life.

whether it’s smurfs, tomato plants, lilacs,
a kind word, a hug, a borrowed book, a smile,
some teasing (which I take as a sign of affection),
an ice cream recommendation, a card order,
a blog comment, an offer to help,
a quick “just checking in” message,
a bit of advice, sweets left on my deck…
all of these little things make me feel…
happy.
and so frigging grateful. ♥

now….to plot how to pay this forward…heehee

Happy Sunday.

In grateful, it's a smurfy world, she's so weird Tags smurfs, grateful, sunday smile, retro, happy
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a very smurfilious post...

August 27, 2019 Arlene Giddings

i don’t pick favorites but…this one is kinda my favorite…heehee

here’s a fun fact that
maybe
you didn’t know about me…
i like smurfs.

well…all retro toys really…
but i really have a smurfy-spot
for these little guys…
maybe i identify with them
because they are only 3 apples tall…
but regardless the reason,
i just really love smurfs.

i had planned on collecting 99 smurfs
(including gargamel and azrael)
so that i could have the whole village
and maybe someday build mushrooms
out of paper mache and set up photo shoots…
yes. i apparently do have too much time on my hands.

i had been stuck at 89 smurfs for a bit…
but recently, some kind people have
passed along some new smurfs to me
so, it makes me incredibly happy to tell you
that i now have
ONE HUNDRED AND NINETEEN smurfs!!

I can’t tell you how excited i was..and how
much i love that people will randomly
bring me smurfs…i find them on my desk at work,
in my mailbox and when I am out for walks…
but a couple of weeks ago
my aunt Marie was having a family get-together
which is exciting enough on it’s own because
yay, family!
and double yay, chicken fricot!!! just the way i like it!!

but, as soon as i walked into the house
i saw a plastic yellow bin in the entry way
FULL OF SMURFS

and not just ANY smurfs.
i mean, i love all the smurfs i get…but these…
these were SMURFS I HAD NEVER SEEN BEFORE!

and i seriously couldn’t contain myself…
normally, i am a little more polite and reserved and calm
but i was literally like “ummmmm….
what are these here for” and when she said they were for me
i just about cried.

these were just so smurfingly smurfulous that
i had to do a small smurfy photo session
so i could share them here…
if you are not into smurfs,
well..you probably stopped reading 7 paragraphs ago…
heehee

and i know that now that i have reached my goal
i really, really should be done
but…i can’t…especially now that I have seen these guys…
i am telling you
i would not been more excited
if someone gave me diamonds…
it was sooooo fun to go through them
and see all the different ones…
and the papa smurfs…
sigh.

so smurfingly smurfy it just makes me want to smurf… :)

In it's a smurfy world, we are family Tags smurfs, papa smurf, toys, toy fanatic, retro, 80s, smurfy
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the worst thing about a great weekend

February 19, 2017 Arlene Giddings

is that you hate to see it come to an end.

yesterday i played around with
the watercolor paints a little bit more
and then we went to visit family and
i got to hold the sweetest teeniest tiniest baby!
i wish i had thought to take a photo
but i was just so absorbed in that sweet-brand-new-baby-smell...
:)

DISCLAIMER:  i am certain that this was not my idea and feel like it was inspired by a photo i had seen on Pinterest, however, I couldn't find it.  If i can find it, i will link to it here...

today has been all about sleeping in
and catching up on tutorials online,
a little of this, a little of that...
trying to make myself do laundry...
but damn it, i just don't wanna.

OH!  and adding my new smurf members to the family!
a sweet friend showed up on the doorstep of the
big old orange house yesterday
with more smurfs...including a papa smurf that
I DID NOT HAVE!
and red from the fraggles...driving a radish, i think!
soooo excited!!!
thank you Elise!!!!

In 2017, grateful, it's a smurfy world, she's so weird, whatcha doin', we are family Tags smurfs, papa smurf, fraggles, red, watercolors, messing around, weekends, go away monday
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friday i'm in love...the snowstorm edition

February 10, 2017 Arlene Giddings

♥ the anticipation of a snow day...a tank full of oil, kitchen full of groceries...safe and warm with nowhere to go.
♥ video chatting with our girl...since we couldn't go over this weekend

♥ tootsie roll suckers
♥ our new compost bin...this is going to sound so weird
but i seriously love this little bin!  it just makes me happy.
♥ with watching "studio" tours on youtube...and drooling over spaces
♥ this FANTASTIC kermit phone that my sweet cousin dropped off for me...
along with smurfs to add to my collection!

♥ and my new favorite treat (don't ask me why
this is new to me...i KNOW they are far from new, heeheehee)
hot fudge sundaes from mcdonalds

In 2017, friday i'm in love, it's a smurfy world, she's so weird, my girl Tags all the good things, fridays are the best days, snow day!, pei, kermit, smurfs
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