You’re likely wondering about this image. Yes, it is an odd one.
During my first year of teaching I brought two of those tacky pink flamingos into the classroom and inserted them into two large plants I bought to add some life to the room. The kids loved those flamingos and somehow they became a ‘thing’ as it were.
I didn’t tell the students about the origin of those tacky wacky birds . . . a drunken walk home from the bar with a group of friends . . . passing a house with pink flamingos on the lawn. . . not sure what happened next but fast forward to my friends and I ‘liberating’ the flamingos . . . the porch light flicking on . . . stuffing the flamingos down ones pants and running like heck. Ah, the pranks of university.
So flamingos were a thing. Many of the gifts I received from the students were flamingo themed.
This was a Christmas gift I received in that first year. I’ve had it for 34 years.
Yesterday it became a conundrum. With the move across the country looming we are making hard choices about what we keep and what we don’t. Moving cross country is an expensive proposition. I haven’t out the flamingo candle out for more than 10 years. Perhaps it was time to let it go.
I asked a friend. This was a mistake because she always say ‘keep it’. While the candle itself is small and weighs little . . . hundreds of small things end up weighing a lot.
In the end I put it in the ‘donate’ bin. Someone else can enjoy it.
You can see why packing up ‘Christmas’ was more challenging than usual. It is normally a one day job. While most was finished yesterday I still have the tree, some odds and sods laying about, and the gift wrapping area.
In addition to culling, we have to pack things away far more carefully than how we normally would. There is a big difference between carrying the totes down to the basement where they will sit patiently for 11 months vs. moving them to the storage unit, then on a truck, then off to BC and into a new house. It’s a big job!
If you’re thinking I am writing a lengthy post because I don’t want to tackle the tree . . . you might be right!