fun

The Doo Doo Bears

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By Miki de Goodaboom

 

Truffle Mcfurry and me  recently spent some days at my parents’ in Benidorm, on the Costa Blanca in Spain. And as we both love to see how Teddy Bears look like in the places we visit, we went on Teddy Bear photo safari. Also sometimes, we might find some who need to be rescued and adopted!

This is when I saw “The Doo Doo Bears”. To be completely honest they are called “Dou-Dou”, but I prefer the double “oo”, because it looks funnier and also to make sure that English people speak it the right way. It would be terrible if they called them Dou-Dou, like in “trout!!!

Truffle and me fell totally in love with the Doo Doo Bears, they are so immensely cute and cuddly! Truffle wanted one for himself, with his name embroidered on it. He said this would certainly help him falling asleep when he has got insomnia, and he would even share it with me when necessary. But he had been naughty with the Mime shortly before  and I did not get him one.

Well, I should have known better, I am upset now, I would love to have one in our bed!

PS: … and yes, you understood it correctly, Truffle sleeps with me…

Doo Doo Bears S

The Mime From Benidorm

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By Truffle McFurry

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)

 

My Mom Miki and me, we recently spent some days by my grandparents, in Benidorm, on the Costa Blanca in Spain. Miki wanted to go on Teddy Bear photo Safari down-town, and of course I went with her.

There I suddenly saw a statue on the middle of the street, wearing a beautiful pink long dress and a pink hat. I asked Miki about the statue. She explained to me that it was not a statue, that it was a real person. That such a person is called “A Mime”, and the aim is to stand or sit there, without moving at all , like a statue, looking beautiful and getting money for it. I observed it a while, and indeed people were stopping and putting money in the box.

Well, I thought, I can do that too! Teddy Bears are great at not moving, and Miki tells me all the time how beautiful I am. And anyway I was wearing blue clothes, I thought it would look pretty with the pink from the mime. Blue for the boy, pink for the girl! So I went and sat in front of the Mime, didn’t move at all, looked beautiful, and waited. I thought this way we could sure earn more money, and we could split it.

But then, after a little while Miki, busy somewhere else, noticed me there and screamed. The Mime  was looking at me with very angry eyes in the middle of her white face. She had just opened her eyes, more was she not allowed to move, you know… Miki grabbed me by my nose and put me back in her bag. I  heard her apologising by the Mime, who did not answer at all . Such an impolite creature! Miki was quite upset with me and explained to me that one does not do such things with Mimes!

Well, I have no idea why, and Miki said I am too young to understand! But many people had gathered there to look at us, I am sure they would have eventually thrown money into the box. But we were already gone, it is so unfair!

And you know what: when I look carefully at the Mime’s face, I think she was not a girl at all! So, on top of it, I think she was cheating! Miki often says that honesty does not always pay… I understand now what she means!

 

The Mime From Benidorm S

Golliver’s Travel

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By Truffle McFurry

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)

I am just a little Teddy Bear, and I don’t do politics and I don’t know much about PC. Well, I do already know a bit about Personal Computer, but not about Politic Correctness! And from what I have heard about it recently, it seems to be weird stuff.

Well, sometimes I have my strong opinions, but normally I don’t get public with them, because I am scared. They say, everybody is spying on you on the internet nowadays.

But now I feel  I have to speak out very loudly. The other day I met my wonderful Auntie Ann from the UK. She presented me my Teddy bear cousins, and then she presented me Golliver. Well, to tell the truth, this was not his real name. She said, his real name is not allowed, because of PC. And she said, Golliver was even banned from the world.  Because he is black!!!

Now I got worried. To start with, Golliver is so beautiful, and was loved by million of children and grown-ups around the world, so why did they ban him? Just because he is black? Is that PC? Why don’t they ban white dolls as well?

But what got me really worried, is that I am black too. All my Teddy bear brothers and sisters and cousins and mates have a light fur. I am the only dark one… does that mean that they will ban me too? That I won’t be able to have my own Facebook page and my website any more? Why not? Many people love me so much! My Mom Miki loves me so much, and my Dad, and my Auntie Ann, and my Auntie Pamaretto, and my Auntie Nelle… and my brothers and sisters and cousins…

Anyway, we all love Golliver and we are immensely happy that he travelled all the way down from the UK to  Mojacar, Andalucia. We love him so much, he is so beautiful and so funny, and he will never be banned from our lovely town!

Miki would be immensely to paint your own Golli! So please, if you have one, contact us, send us a photo and tell us his personal story and we will publish it here!

Please, protect us all!

Go Golliver, Go Teddy!!!

 

Gollivers Travel S

 

 

Georgia And Pedro

/ Miki de Goodaboom / 1 Comment

By Ann La Mar, from the UK

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom, based on a photo provided by ClaireBear)

 

I was so excited to be Georgia’s god mother and that Claire thought I was up to this task! I bought Pedri for her in Spain. I told him all about Claire and what wonderful cakes she bakes. Chocolate cake, cup cakes and carrot cake really made Pedro want to go to the UK very quickly. It was the marzipan on the Battenburg cake that got him excited, he loved almonds.

So he came on the plane with me and was taken by car to Claire’s “House of Cakes” where he and Georgia have been friends ever since. Now Georgia has grown up, she helps with baking cakes so Pedro has a continuous supply of his favourite cakes… one very happy bear!

Georgia And Pedro S

Captain Abearica

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By Miki de Goodaboom

As we drove up to the South of France some weeks ago, we stopped at a highway store to buy some water and discovered very unusual, very cute 33cl bottles from the famous make Fontvella (Danone). They are shaped and brilliantly designed like some kids favourites Marvel Avengers Characters (Thor, Ironman, Captain America) and also the Frozen characters (Elsa, Anna and Olaf).

They are meant for kids aged between 4 and 11, but I can tell you, big kids -such as us- love them too and we bought all of them!

As I came back to Spain, I told a friend in the UK about these bottles. And last week, I had the immense surprise to receive a photo of a Captain America Teddy Bear: my friend has got friends who have a child who received that bear for his birthday recently!

I was over the moon, such a wonderful subject for my “Go Teddy” site, I thought. And of course,  I had to paint that new bear with the Captain America bottle in his hand.

I called the bear “Captain Abearica”.. I hope you get it! If you don’t, wait until you have got a big cold and speak out loud “Captain America”… then you will understand!

Captain Abearica S

 

A Birthday Clown For Miki De Goodaboom

/ Miki de Goodaboom / 2 Comments

By Truffle McFurry

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)
 
Today is my Mom’s birthday! She always loves a happy birthday, loaded with lovely presents and great food and kind birthday greetings, but today will be different. My Mom is so sad, it is breaking my heart…

So yesterday, all my sisters and brothers and mates, we have all broken our Piggy banks to buy a nice present for her. Even our house Minion gave an Euro to it… I do wonder though where it had the Euro from, had he perhaps stolen it and nobody noticed? Anyway, we all wanted to buy for Miki something which would made her laugh. Because as everybody else in this world, my Mom is never more beautiful than when she laughs!!!

And so we found that happy clown by the Chinese shop on the corner… You know, the Chinese are the cheapest, so luckily we could offer it. And then I put clothes on which I know Miki loves (me not that much, they are a bit too girly for a real boy like me…) and we all went to wake up her up today waving the clown at her face and singing “Happy Birthday”.

And it worked: she did laugh!

A Birthday Clown For Miki S

 

Bear With Hard Rock Cafe

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By Miki de Goodaboom

For many years, Truffle’s Dad – Kev Moore, The English Rocker- and me have always visited the local Hard Rock Cafes, whenever there was one where we travelled. We enjoyed looking at all the Memorabilia exhibited in these places, enjoyed the food, and, last but not least, before leaving, the obligatory visit to the shop, in search of some nice commemorative T-Shirt for Kev who is collecting them.
 
And me, from the moment Truffle entered my life, my eyes were only attracted by the Hard Rock Cafe bears… unfortunately, at the beginning, Truffle was very jealous and scared that another Teddy could take his place in my heart, so I never dared getting one. Yes, these jealousy things are so tough to handle, and Teddy bears are no different in that matter! Instead, I tried persuading the shop attendants to sell me the hoodies or shirts they Teddies wore, but they never did: they were only available with the bears.

And now, Truffle has understood that he does not need to be jealous.. but… I doubt I will ever visit a Hard Rock Cafe again! I would love though to paint a series of these bears, so I am asking you all, who have such a Hard Rock Cafe Teddy, and would like to share him and his story with me and Truffle and the world: PLEASE contact us, or leave a photo and the connected story in the comment thread. I would love that so much!

Here is an example of A French Teddy bear from the Hard Rock Cafe in Paris, France…

 

Paris Hard Rock Cafe Bear S

 

Camembear

/ Miki de Goodaboom / 3 Comments

By Kev Le Chat

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)

When I was a reasonably typical thoughtless twenty-something, I was hit with something that was hard to comprehend. My Mum was diagnosed with cancer.  Being useless at expressing my feelings properly at the best of times, I did something spontaneous….I bought her a big teddy bear. It was probably a bit mental really, but in fact, felt like the completely natural thing to do, and she kept it in her bedroom always.

When she passed away, it came to me. I don’t know if she never named him, perhaps she did. But I so know that he is a lovely reminder of my Mum, not a painful one. When we visited New Orleans many years later, Miki and I brought him some Mardis Gras beads and some New Orleans Saints sunglasses, shaled like fleur-de-lys. He’s become somehow synoymous with The Big Easy since then! …and the French connection doesn’t end there, because on Planet Goodaboom, he was given a name ( you can’t live there without one) …it is Camembear!

Bear on Bourbon S copy

A Bike For Cousin Marlon Blanco

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By Truffle McFurry

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)

This is a special post for my lovely cousin Marlon Blanco, from the UK. But everybody else can read it, of course!

Last week his Mom, Auntie Ann, sent me a photo of poor Marlon sitting at the bottom of a beautiful crochet bike on the Tour de Yorkshire. He wanted to race the Tour on that bike, but the bike was much too big for him!

I suddenly remembered another lovely bike that I saw In France, during our last trip. A white rabbit was selling it, among other things, at the corner of a street in a village by Albi. If I had known Marlon would want a bike so much, I would have bought it for him. Mind you, everything is so expensive is France, and I have only 2 Euros in my Piggy Bank, sure it would have not been enough!

But I was thinking, if Auntie Ann cannot do a crochet bike for Marlon, and we cannot either, perhaps Marlon’s Dad could make one for him, out of wood, like the French one? And perhaps even In the bright yellow and blue colours of the Tour de Yorkshire?

Anyway, Marlon, Miki painted this bike for you. So, at least you have got one now, even if it is only on the paper! We hope you like it!

xx

Truffle

A White Rabbit On A Bike S

I Love You More Than Chocolate!

/ Miki de Goodaboom / 7 Comments
By Miki de Goodaboom
People might have wondered why I am painting Teddy bears. And other toys, and so many of them! They might have thought that I am in fact  “a serious artist”, and wonder what I am doing!
It is not my way to spread  my private life out there, but here, I feel I owe the persons who like me and my art an explanation. It is a story who only a very few people know..
Three years ago I lost my brother and godfather Claude. Suddenly. The ones who went through such a loss know how devastating it is. Yes, I was devastated and I did not know where to find the energy for my own life any more.
This is when my partner Kev Moore went out and came back with that Teddy Bear for me. He was only wearing a little jumper with the words
“I Love you more than chocolate!”
and was looking at me with such immense eyes telling me that he was so sorry, and that he was there for me, always…
He was my first Teddy Bear ever!
I fell in love with that bear and felt indeed an immense comfort. I decided to call him “Truffle McFurry”, because “truffle” in French means as well the nose of an animal as this delicious chocolate sweetie.
And since then, Truffle never left me. And I never left him. When he is by me, Claude is by me too…
And this is why. People might think I have lost my mind to travel around with that little bear, but I have not. I simply love him, and need him, and he always tells me that Claude is still among us… and also that LOVE is around me…
I Love You More Than Chocolate S