Summary of January

One month down, only eleven more to go!

What can I tell you about January?

I didn't really have a plan when I started this blog. I quickly realized that no plan was no good. But what to do with Gumby every day for a year? I am not a world traveler, and frankly, even if I was, it is not easy taking a six foot inflatable Gumby around, even one with roller skates. So, I came up with the idea of taking holiday pictures of him on the days he will not be traveling, which will probably be most of them. As I have already noted, I had no idea there were so many unusual holidays, but I am really glad there are because that saves me always trying to come up with a new concept.

While my giant Gumby is in most of the pictures, some times he is not practical. Good thing I have a stash of alternate size Gumbys that can fill in when necessary.

This blog is new, but I have traveled with Gumby and taken pictures of him in different places for several years. I am not above repurposing some of these pictures if the need presents itself. There are two "cheats" this month. Also, all the pictures are original and have not been altered in any way, other than some minor cropping and cleaning up some of the backgrounds. You know this is true because the quality would be better if I was a whiz at PhotoShop.

I am trying to be frugal with this blog. My total expenditures for the month of January is $7.28. Who knew that already owning a cheesehead and having a next door neighbor with a dog that has a fabulous wardrobe would come in handy?

Finally, up until January 31, I was very good about posting every day, although it took a week or two to figure out that this blog's date stamp is on PST, which means that once I discovered this, I had to learn how to change some of the dates and adjust accordingly. Then, on the thirty first, I was sick for a couple of days and I had run out of advance pictures to use, so we had two sick days. And then on February 2, I lost power, which set us back another day.

I wasn't really sure how this blog would work out. I am the sort of person that around January 12, I could have decided this blog was an insane idea, taken it down and put Gumby back into storage. But so far, so good. Working with Gumby every day makes me smile and my husband and the cats have more or less adjusted to this unusual project.

I hope you are enjoying this as much as I am, and as always, please share the Gumby love.

Happy Backward Day!

Try doing something backward today.

Happy National Croissant Day!

Yum! Nous pouvons remercier les français pour beaucoup de choses. Le parfum, le bon vin, le Tour de France... Mais aujourd'hui, remercions-les pour les croissants

Happy Corn Chip Day!

It is not possible to tape corn chips together. Trust me on this one. You can also not glue them, or use candle wax. And then, a stroke of genius! What binds corn chips together better than cheese?  A few seconds in the microwave, a day for it to set, and viola! The perfect "glue" for today's post.

Happy Thank A Plug In Developer Day!

Yes, I know this is not the plug in referenced for this holiday. However, Gumby and I are exceptionally grateful for this particular one.

Happy Thomas Crapper Day!

When you flush, think of Thomas Crapper, the plumber who inventing the flushing mechanism on a popular indoor fixture. He died today in January 1910.

Happy Snow Day!

For those of you keeping up with holidays, today is also National Peanut Brittle Day.

Happy Macintosh Computer Day!

Thank you, Steve. May you recover. You computer changed my life.

Happy Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day!

Oddly enough, there seems to be some debate as to which date in January is Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day. Some say it is the last Monday of the month, others favor the 25th, some, the 26th. Who knew there would be so much controversy? Gumby suggests you travel with bubble wrap all this week just to be on the safe side. Thanks to Junko for the bubble wrap.

Happy National Pie Day!

Unlike some of the lesser holidays we have encountered, National Pie Day is sponsored by the American Pie Council, which makes it legit. Since I also write this blog a few days in advance, I discovered the APC, (as those of us in the know call it), has a count down to the second clicker for the start of pie day. Imagine my surprise when throughout all of Pie Day, the clicker just stayed at zero. Shame on you, APC.

Happy Answer Your Cat's Questions Day!

Today is supposed to be a day to ponder what your cat is pondering. I am pondering why anyone would ponder this. 

Happy International Fetish Day!

This holiday originated in the UK just in 2008, so you can say it is brand spanking new. The Blockhead character featured in this tattoo is half is half of a mischievous duo who were always causing trouble for Gumby and Pokey. Sidenote: If you look closely, you can see Gumby is wearing roller skates. Of course, there are ecards for this.

Happy Cheese Day!

I can't find anything about this holiday other than three other websites thinks this is a holiday today so it must be true. Who knows what you have forward to in the days to come? Coffee Ground Day? Drier lint   Day? Stay tuned! Mercifully, there is no ecard for this.

Happy Tin Can Day!

On this day in 1825, Ezra Dagget and Thomas Kensott obtained the United States patent for storing food in tin cans. This is also a big day in my house because without cans, my cats would starve to death. While the US is the only country I know of that has a tin can holiday, no one knows how to celebrate the can like the Aussies! This country's "can and aerosol news" (sic) website http://www.can-news.com.au/home.asp has a link to the history of cans and canning that will allow you to download a .pdf about this subject that included a four page,8 x10, full color information comic strip on the role of cans in Australia. That is a serious commitment to cans. And you guessed it. You can prove to your friends you have finally lost it by sending them a Happy Tin Can day ecard. http://www.all-yours.net/c/xgallery/tincanpatent1.html Filling in for six foot inflatable Gumby today is a rare Gumby shaped shampoo bottle.

Happy Winnie the Pooh Day!

Today is the birthday of Winnie the Pooh's creator, AA Miline. Hug your favorite bear and crack open the honey pot.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Citing safety considerations, Gumby did not want to pose with a lighted candle, but he urges you to make note of this special holiday.

Happy Nothing Day!

Seinfeld may have been a TV show about nothing, but this is a whole day to do nothing. Nothing Day was created by newspaperman Harold Pullman Coffin in 1973 who stated his goal was "to provide Americans with one national day when they can just sit without celebrating, observing, or honoring anything."  As Gumby is still acclimating to his life as a supermodel, he is appreciating this day off. You can send someone a Nothing Day ecard, but that would be self-defeating so I am not going to give you a link.

Happy Hat Day!

As a hat collector, I was so excited to learn there is a Hat Day. Now I can finally justify my collection of four dozen black veiled hats. And it's not too late to vote for Hatperson of the the Year, sponsored by The Headwear Association. I kid you not. www.theheadwearassociation.org/

Happy National Dress Up Your Pet Day!

Thanks to Lydia and Poppy for their help with these pictures. My cats would have not liked this photo op and Poppy already has a fabulous wardrobe. Sidenote: Lydia and I were talking outside with Gumby in tow. A car going down the street stops in front of her house for a few moments and then drives away. She says, "That's odd. I wonder what they were doing?" I suggested perhaps they had never seen a six foot inflatable Gumby.

Happy Rubber Duckie Day!

Celebrate the birthday of Ernie's famous rubber duckie! Special thanks to Nellies Sports Bar in DC for providing me with the perfect Gumby-size rubber duckie.

Happy Feast of Fabulous Wild Men Day!

You know I am really scraping the bottom of the barrel when I have to resort to a lame holiday like this. But it gives me the opportunity to flaunt the fact I have not one, but TWO six foot inflatable Gumbys. And I never noticed there are slight variations in them. Just imagine the other surprises to come in the months ahead. This lesser holiday also has its own ecard http://www.ultimateecards.com/image/755-jan-12-feast-of-fabolous-wild-men-day-card and I have actually posted it in a timely manner. (Wow! It's the cast of "Queer Eye")

Happy Universal Letter Writing Week!

Shock someone this week and send them a handwritten letter instead of an email, Tweet, or Facebook posting.

Happy National Clean Off Your Desk Day!

If a cluttered desk is a sign of genius...

Gumby has significantly lowered my IQ.

Happy National Volunteer Blood Donor Month!

Due to artistic differences, Gumby refused to cooperate with this picture. However, those of you who are not inflatable and have blood, should donate.

Happy Bubble Bath Day!

Hot water may cause shrinkage.

Who knew this was a holiday? I am starting to think people are making these "holidays" up. However, if you are trying to take a different picture of Gumby every day for a year, they come in handy. Trivia: you can send someone a Happy Bubble Bath Day ecard. I kid you not. http://www.123greetings.com/events/bubblebathday/

Happy I'm Mad As Hell and I'm Not Going to Take It Anymore Day!

I have no idea why this movie line has it's own day, but there you go. Plus, it is from the wonderful movie "Network" and we are all mad as Hell at times, so why not have a holiday to mark it? Peter Finch, who said this memorable line, was the first actor ever to win a posthumous Oscar.

Happy Bean Day!

Here's your chance to celebrate the bean crop, especially if you are a vegetarian or a vegan. Bean fart jokes are optional.

Happy National Bird Day!

Frankly, I dislike birds, especially wild ones my cats drag into the house. However, lots of other people like them so this is a day for them to celebrate bird watching, bird adoption and learning more about caring for birds. Bit of bird trivia: James Audubon's book "Birds of America" recently set a record for the most expensive book ever sold at auction, fetching $7.3 million. That is worth an awful lot of parakeets.

Happy Dimpled Chad Day!

Most of us had never heard of dimpled chads until the highly contested Presidential election of 2000. A chad is a paper fragment which is created when a hole is punched into paper and a dimpled chad occurs when the punch is incomplete. The dimpled chads that were created in voting machines used in the swing state of Florida caused a prolonged battle between Al Gore and George W. Bush as to won had won the presidency. It is also a good day to pay extra attention to anyone you know named Chad and who has dimples.

Happy Drinking Straw Day!

The drinking straw was invented on January 3, 1888 and was made out of paper. In the 1930s, Joseph Friedman created the flexible straw. Straw technology remained more or less static until the early 1960’s when the first plastic straws were rolled out. Sippy cups, which face it, would be nothing without the straw component, were invented in the 1980s by Richard Belanger, who eventually licensed it to Playtex. So, when you are grabbing your favorite cold beverage today, add a straw and salute to Drinking Straw Day!

Happy National Soup Month!

I guess January is a good a month as any.

The bustle of the holiday season is over, and for many us, January is cold. (If you don't live where it is cold, no soup for you. Feel free to jump to February.) So it makes sense to use those Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years leftovers to make a big batch of homemade soup and hunker down with that and your favorite bread.

Happy New Year