Bla Di Blog

Fowl Dinners

2012-01-29T12:33:00.000+01:00

Last week I stumbled across this program by Jamie Oliver via Nienie's blog. It's about the food industry, particularly the egg and poultry industry.

Eye-opening, to say the least.

It got me thinking and:
- I decided to renew my adopt-a-chicken contribution, not just for a year like a few years ago (which I was too lazy to renew...) but open-ended this time so I won't forget to renew it next year.
- when grocery shopping this week, I paid extra attention to buying organic products. It's a work in progress (and I know I won't be able to part with some of my favourite items which aren't organic), but every little bit helps, right? In the past, I already made a point of always buying free range eggs, but from now on I'll also make an increased effort to buy more organic foods.
- This week I made the concious decision to get some vegetarian meat-alternatives for dinner. (some were a bigger success than others...)
Going totally vegetarian isn't an option for me - to be honest, I simply like eating meat too much, and biologically we are omnivores after all (in my opinion, we need some animal-derived products in our diet to stay healthy. To all nay-sayers: I respect your opinion, but I think I know at least a little bit of what I'm talking about since I've been battling chronic vitamin deficiency for some years now)
All in all, I consider being a part-time vegetarian to be a happy medium.
- Cheap meat = animal cruelty. I need to make an effort to buy organic meat. The animals are still killed, but at least they've had a good life and they are killed somewhat humanely.
- Since 2 of my cavies died last November, I've thought of getting 2 new cavies to complete the pack. Instead of buying 2 babies at the pet store, I drove to Utrecht yesterday to adopt 2 rescue cavies. Tommie and Annika have meanwhile bonded and are getting used to their new surroundings. In a few weeks, I'll introduce them to the rest of the pack.

They say "a better world starts with yourself". It's a humble start, but I'm trying to do my part.

Epiphany

2012-01-23T15:51:00.003+01:00

The other day I had a bit of an aha-moment. It kinda snuck up on me...

There was some work-related issue that I had a strong opinion about (all in all not particularly unusual...). Oftentimes my supervisor tends to agree with me, but in this particular instance, he didn't. I was not amused, to use an understatement. In fact, my inner 5-year-old was about 2 minutes away from throwing a temper tantrum, pouting and feet-stomping included.
However, I managed to restrain said inner 5-year-old and remained my 30-something composed self ;-)

It did make me realize that I tend to get my way a lot. Hell, even as an adult, I still have my dad wrapped around my pinky, for one...
I guess I haven't had to deal with a lot of adversity in my life. It's actually been a pretty smooth ride so far.

My parents are still happily married after 40 years.

Though we weren't exactly rich while I was growing up, I don't recall ever lacking anything as a child.

No traumatic events such as abuse or war that scarred me for life.

I didn't even have to put much effort into school to pass with flying colours.

Being an only child, I've always fought against the spoiled brat stereotype. And I don't know whether it stems from being an only child, or whether it is my red hair or my star sign (fire sign) or my character, or whether it's simply human nature, but I don't like not getting my way. One bit.

OH.MY.GAWD {insert Janice-from-Friends-voice}

Seems like I'm a spoiled brat after all!

Hmmm...

2012-01-18T23:42:00.000+01:00

Source: facebook.com via Claudia on Pinterest

One trip each quarter

2012-01-14T18:37:00.001+01:00

At the beginning of 2011, after a few years of infrequent travelling, I set myself the (luxury) goal to take at least one trip each quarter during the upcoming year. I did allow myself a pretty broad definition of "trip": it could be anything from a long weekend away in NL to a few weeks abroad and everything in between.

I'm pretty fortunate that I managed to pull it off last year, even if it was with some outside help (my trip to Egypt was postponed from October 2010 to January 2011, for instance).

Let's review, shall we??

Q1: 10-day trip to Egypt in January.
Q2: 4-day trip to Istanbul at the end of March (OK, so technically this was still Q1, but it was literally the last 4 days of March so I'd say it counts ;-) )
Q3: 1-week trip to Texel in August.
Q4: 17-day trip to China in October.

I really liked having something to look forward to each quarter, and I especially liked the idea of taking a trip to a sunny destination in Q1, to battle my Winter Blues (which seems to be getting worse each year).

For this year I want to attempt the same. I've already booked 2 trips, one to Israel next month (vitamin D-boost!) and one to the USA in Fall, so I'm already halfway there! I'm also thinking about a city trip to London in Spring, and one in December to Vienna, but we'll have to see how that pans out.

In any case: happy travelling!

Goodbye 2011 | Hello 2012

2011-12-31T14:41:00.003+01:00

Wow, it's Dec. 31st, the last day of 2011 and it feels as if the year has flown by. Didn't we just celebrate New Years last month??

Last January, I picked 'Peace' as my One Little Word for 2011, because I felt 2010 had been very hectic. Didn't fulfill its promise too well, now did it?

2011 was dominated by my grandfather's illness and the deaths of both my grandparents in April. I had some health problems and took a break in August and September to prevent a complete burn-out. There was another 'restructuring' at work in October (turns out last year's reorganization didn't work out as well as was hoped) and I lost 2 of my pets in November.

But there were fun things too!

I finally got to travel to Egypt, Istanbul and China - 3 destinations and 2 more world wonders crossed off my Life List! My parents celebrated their 40th (!) wedding anniversary this month. I got a brand-spanking new car in June. I treated myself to a drool-worthy KitchenAid mixer. I managed to lose 8kg (approx. 17,5lbs) this year through Weight Watchers. I finished not just one but two LOAD's, in May and September *pat on back*.

Anyway, I've given it some thought and my OLW for 2012 is 'Change'.

I'm not happy about my health (and having a serious talk with my GP next week).
I'm not happy about my career.
I'm not happy about my personal life (how long will this man-of-my-dreams stay in hiding???)

So, in short, I've decided that 'A Change Is Gonna Come' in 2012 {thank you Sam Cooke}

How?

- I want a new referral from my GP to visit a specialist regarding my vitamin deficiency (my vitamin D levels fluctuated from 13 in April to 27 in July to 86 in September (thanks to a new supplement) and back to 35 in December. For the record, below 50 is generally considered to be bad...)
- I want to re-evaluate certain relationships. I feel that I'm investing a lot of energy in some, while it's completely one-sided.
- I want to explore different career options. That might mean I'll have to take a step back financially, so I also want to learn how to live on a tighter budget (never a bad idea!).

In addition, there are also some smaller resolutions for the new year:
- I want to take up swimming and/or boxing again.
- I want to lose 12kg in 2012 - one for each month. (That seems realistic and doable, right?)
- I want do get back to regular Bento-ing.
- I want do to at least one LOAD this year (there are 3 each year, generally in February, May and October)
- I want to continue Project Life on a monthly basis.
- I want to keep being creative in general - that's why I started Everyday Creative after all!
- I want to make at least 1 scrapbooking page each week - enter PLOAW, Project LayOut A Week.
- I want to cross of some more items off of my Life List - our trip to the USA has already been booked, Grand Canyon here we come!
... and I'm sure there are other things that I just can't remember at the moment ;-)

All in all I've got my work cut out for me in 2012!

Breaking Dawn Part 1 (a.k.a Twilight 4.1)

2011-11-18T23:04:00.000+01:00

Part one of the final instalment of the Twilight Saga premiered this week, and of course I had to see it!
I thought the special effects were really cool, I liked the creative solutions for some of the scenes (transformation scene - very CSI) and the honeymoon scene did not disappoint either. All in all very nicely done! Now we'll have to patiently wait another year for Part II... (patience is not my strong suit...)

Here's the trailer:

Minus 10%

2011-10-31T13:43:00.001+01:00

Almost 9 months ago to the day, I had had enough (again) and decided to lose weight (again).
A lot has happened since then, and eating healthily has not always been on the top of my priority list. But I faithfully kept attending the local Weight Watchers meetings (I guess I need that kick in the butt!). With result, because as of today, I've lost 10% of my initial weight! Woohoo!
I still have a long way to go, and I'm not losing it as fast as I would sometimes like, but I'm slowly but surely getting there! Go me! ;-)

Everyday Creative

2011-10-30T19:40:00.000+01:00

Inspired by a recent magazine article in Flow Magazine about 365-day-projects and other bloggers who've done/are doing something similar, I'm starting a new project as of 1Nov2011: Everyday Creative.

The goal is to do something creative every day (hence the title...). Unlike others out there, I'm not pinning myself down to only one discipline (I have enought self-knowledge to know that I'll be bored quickly if I don't mix things up a bit). I've already got some project ideas lined up, such as a quilted comforter, next year's LOAD (of course), a crocheted afghan, handmade cards, a travelling journal about China etc.

The plan is to post a weekly update on my new blog, so stop by sometime to check it out!

China revisited (Part II)

2011-10-26T22:44:00.080+02:00

Thu 13-10-2011: arrival in Xi’an at the crack of dawn. Our hotel is across from the train station, but we are so early that the rooms haven’t been cleaned yet. Taking a nap is impossible when one of the maids comes in to remove the bed sheets but doesn’t replace them…
We leave the hotel at 10am to go to the city wall for a 14km bike ride. The bikes are pretty rickety, the wall has potholes and I cycled approximately 4 times in the past 5 years. Yeah, not going to happen…

For lunch we go to a dumpling restaurant where they serve dumplings of which the shape shows what type of filling it has: a bird for chicken, a bunny for rabbit, a walnut for (you guessed it) walnuts etc.

Close to the restaurant are the bell and drum towers and the Muslim quarter with its many souvenir shops. I even spot a Walmart across the street! We return to the hotel after a short visit and thankfully my room has been made! I pop in next door at McD’s for dinner but that’s all for the rest of the day – the lack of sleep is really catching up with me.

Fri 14-10-2011: visit to the terracotta warriors outside Xi’an. In order to get VIP parking (and not having to walk 45 mins from the parking lot), we stop at a government shop en route. I give in to temptation and buy some souvenirs.
At the TW-complex we are in luck when one of discoverers is signing books. (We are told he makes a rare appearance but that might very well be a ploy to get us to buy an autographed book…). I flee the movie theater where they show a very bad quality film about the history of the terracotta warriors because it’s giving me ahead ache and decide to go ahead and visit the 3 pits. Pit 1 is the most well-known because it houses the rows and rows of warriors. Pit 2 shows some of the cavalry and pit 3 apparently is the command center with the generals.

A lot has not yet been uncovered as the archeologists haven’t figured out yet how to excavate the statues without them losing their paint within 20 minutes or what to do about the mercury that was used to simulate a river.

After lunch at a very touristy restaurant, we return to Xi’an to spend the rest of the day at our leisure.

Sat 15-10-2011: an early morning flight to Guilin, which means the alarm goes off at 4.30am – YAWN! The ticket printer breaks down at the airport, which causes us to barely make our flight in time. On the up-side: we are at the very front of the plane, which means we are off immediately upon landing.

After our arrival, it’s another 1,5hrs by bus to Yangshuo. The whole group has lunch at the Twin Peaks Café in West St (Yangshuo’s main street), after which we leave to go rafting on the Dragon River. This sounds a lot more exciting than it is: there are a few minor rapids (and yes, when I forget to lift up my feet in time, my jeans are soaked up to the knee…), but mostly it is very relaxing.
At night, we attend a light show about the history of the ‘Drum People’ (the traditional people in this area). The show has a cast of thousands – very impressive!

Sun 16-10-2011: there is a long bike trek on today’s program, but I don’t feel up to it due to the long hours yesterday. Instead I spend my day exploring Yangshuo and relaxing.
During breakfast at a local tourist café, I noticed they served my favourite guilty pleasure from home: fries with mayonnaise and peanut sauce (a.k.a. patatje oorlog). When in Nepal a few years ago, I had it, so now that I’m in China, I need to eat this as well! I vow to return for dinner, and just as I’ve finished the last of my fries (which are a bit greasy but taste ok), I’m joined by F, W and C, who also decide to try a patatje oorlog. After a little while, D&M and L&M also join us for drinks. M shows us the waving-Mao-watch she bought because she thought it was funny, and what do you know? A street vendor comes in and F treats the rest of us 3 girls to a Mao-watch as well ;-)

Mon 17-10-2011: free time until 3pm when we leave for a boat tour on the Li River. The day before, you could sign up for different morning activities such as tai chi or a cooking class. Decisions, decisions… I chose the cooking class.

Our teacher Jessica first takes us to the local market to buy ingredients. There are a seafood section, a vegetable section and a meat section, amongst other things. Especially the meat section causes a bit of culture shock and some of the group have difficulty stomaching it. Let’s just say that, yes, it is true that they still eat dogs in China…

The cooking class itself is a lot of fun and we make (and eat) 3 dishes: dumplings (fried and steamed), stir-fried noodles with vegetables and kung pao chicken. We are pretty good chefs if I do say so myself!
After the class, we decide to have a drink at the Twin Peaks Café where we meet N and R, and are later joined by F, W, C, K, D and M too.
The boat tour that afternoon is lovely. Great panoramas and we stop at a little village along the way as well. After the boat tour, we have our last group diner of this trip on the shores of the river.

Tue 18-10-2011: we are supposed to leave Yangshuo at 10am but the airco on the bus has broken down. Fortunately it is fixed quickly, and we are on our way only 1hr later.
Instead of spending 21hrs on a train to Guangzhou, we are taking the bus on the newly finished highway. This highway is SO new, that there are hardly any gas stations (read: restroom stops) along the way yet. This makes for some tricky timing to prevent ‘accidents’…
We arrive in Guangzhou in the early evening and a few of us decide to go to a Cantonese restaurant along with local guide Rose. There is a bit of a misunderstanding when R wants to order a snake dish and the waiter comes in with the live snake in a bucket to show us its size… This makes M, D and C so uncomfortable that they decide to leave. The rest of us decide to stay and we manage to convince the staff to let us choose our own dishes from the menu. In the end, we settle on some ‘safe’ vegetarian, chicken and beef dishes. R has chosen a crocodile dish instead of the snake (it was only possible to order the entire snake, which would be too much for our party). I tried it, and you know what? It does NOT taste like chicken ;-).
Despite its rocky start, the evening turned out very well – and tasty! – and has since been referred to as the ‘snake incident’…

Wed 19-10-2011: another early start as our bus leaves on 6.45am for the ferry terminal. The ferry takes us in about 2hrs to HK over the Pearl River. Upon our arrival at the Panda Hotel, not all rooms are finished, so we decide to go for lunch first.
After lunch it’s possible to go on a tour to Victoria’s Peak, Aberdeen and Stanley Market, but I prefer to explore HK by myself. After jumping in the metro to Tsim Tsa Shui (and changing lines unnecessary along the way…), I take the Star Ferry to Central. The Escalators (boasted as being the world’s longest escalator with 800m) are a bit disappointing: instead of a few tall escalators, there are a lot of small ones. I expected escalators to rival the ones in the London and Prague metro stations! Nonetheless you cover a lot of height, which becomes very clear when I need to descend quite a bit to get to the HK Hard Rock Café (respect to the ladies in heels in Central!).
After dinner, I take the metro back to Tsim Tsa Shui for the river bank laser show. I’m a bit early, which gives me the opportunity to walk along the Avenue of the Stars, HK’s own Walk of Fame.
The laser show is very nice but only takes 10 minutes. I decide to look for Daiso, a Japanese department store that is supposed to be located at Mong Kok. With the help of some locals, I eventually manage to find Jusco, a store that carries Daiso products. When I get back to the hotel at 10.30pm, utterly exhausted, I see a banner advertising the fact that the exact same store is also located in the shopping mall underneath the hotel. Figures…

Thu 20-10-2011: final day of our trip! S joins me to visit the Giant Buddha at the Po Lin monastery on Lantau Island. The statue is high up in the hills and you can either take the bus or a cable car. We choose the cable car, which provides awesome views of the area (you could also take a glass-bottom cable car, but after our Shanghai adventure, we decided to chicken out and take the ‘regular’ cable car instead). It almost feels like an amusement park ride!
There is a bit of a touristy area before you get to the Giant Buddha, where we do some souvenir shopping. After some very greasy fried dumplings for lunch, we make our way to the statue. There are 260 steps to climb up to the statue, and both of us decide to appreciate the view from the bottom ;-)
I contemplated visiting Victoria’s Peak in the afternoon since I did not have enough time the day before, but the rest of the trip is taking its toll and I cannot get myself to do it. Instead I join S at the hotel pool for a bit of reading and lounging. We are later joined by F, W, N and R.
After dinner, it’s time to say goodbye to those who are staying a bit longer in HK. Then I do some final bento-shopping at Jusco. N has told me a few days ago that she’s interested in bento as well, so I surprise her with a little bento starter kit, which is very much appreciated ;-)
We finally leave for the airport, and our flight leaves promptly at 11pm.

Fri 21-10-2011: after some 12hrs in the air, we touch down at Amsterdam where my parents are already awaiting my arrival. After saying my goodbyes to the rest of the group, they whisk me off to their car, and barely 1 hour later I’m home .

It was an amazing trip, but I can’t help feeling happy to be sleeping in my own bed again!

Here are some pics of all the stuff I brought home...

Souvenirs:

1) Mao hat for my dad; 2) statues of the terracotta warriors fro friends; 3) shopping bag from Beijing; 4) postcards and other paper goods; 5) miniatures for my souvernir showcase; 6) signed book about the terracotta warriors; 7) Mao notebook and watch; 8) carved rabbit 'chop' (with my name in Chinese), a hanger with deities (?) that I thought was cute and rabbit chop sticks (rabbit = my Chinese star sign); 9) key chains for my mother; 10) magnets for a friend.

Bento-goodies:

1) insulated water bottle carrier; 2) 2 bento boxes; 3) large & small rice paddles; 4) Japanese grater (for garlic, ginger etc); 5) sandwich cutter; 6) triangular bento cups; 7) cute shaped containers; 8) jelly cooling elements (oops - upside down!); 9) cute sauce bottles; 10) small mellon ball (or other stuff!) shaper.

China revisited (Part I)

2011-10-26T21:52:00.126+02:00

Wed 5-10-2011: off to China! My mom accompanies me to the airport by train.

Thu 6-10-2011: arrival in Shanghai. A combination of exhaustion, nerves and heat (the Chinese apparently like warmth – both the airplane and airport are an oven!) make me feel sick to the point of vomiting.
While the rest of the group go to dinner and attend an acrobat show, I stay at the hotel. Way to start off my vacation, hopefully this is not a taste of what is to come…

Fri 7-10-2011: well rested and feeling 100% better. A busy day visiting the sights of Shanghai: observation deck at the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, the Shanghai Historical Museum, Yu Yuan Gardens and Bazaar, tea ceremony, lunch, the Bund, Jade Buddha Temple, jade shop, dinner, boat tour on Huangpu River to view the Shanghai skyline, and finally Nanjing Road. Whew!

Sat 8-10-2011: free day to roam around Shanghai. Taxi to People’s Square/People’s Park, where I come across a Pixar exhibition at the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art. Then back to Nanjing Road for souvenir hunting. I end up at the Bund, where I MUST take a picture with the Bull – a replica of the Wall Street Bull in NYC. After lunch, taxi to the Shanghai Aquarium. My instructions to the cabbie? A drawing of a tower and a fish… (the aquarium is next to the Oriental Pearl TV Tower). You don’t need to speak Chinese fluently to get your message across ;-)

Then back to the hotel since we leave for the train station at 4pm. Being one of the youngest in our group, I’m delegated to the top bunk. It’s a challenge to climb up there and the entire night I pray I don’t have to go to the toilet so I won’t have to climb up and down in the dark and potentially break my neck…

Sun 9-10-2011: arrival in Beijing. When we get to the hotel, which is within walking distance from Tiananmen Square, I take a power nap in the hope to catch up on some rest after not having slept a wink on the train. After lunch, off to the hutongs for a riksja tour. We also visit the Drum Tower, a local supermarket and a local family where we get educated by a very enthusiastic man on the art of keeping crickets and grasshoppers ;-) A short visit to a scenic street that used to be famous for its Opium houses which have since been converted to tourist shops.

For dinner, I make my traditional visit to the Hard Rock Café.

Mon 10-10-2011: early start to arrive at the Great Wall before the masses. The views are awesome with the autumn colours! After lunch at a roadside restaurant, we visit the Summer Palace where the impirial family used to spend its Summers. It was the stage of a lot of intrigue, especially at the hands of Empress-Dowager Cixi.

I choose to forego the Beijing Opera at night and instead have dinner at a restaurant close by. The extensive menu has some very interesting dishes ranging from duck flippers to offal. I go the safe route and have a delicious vegetarian dish of potato, eggplant and green pepper. I even manage to order part in Chinese: yi ge mifan (1 portion of white rice) and yi ge cha (1 tea) . Apparently those lessons in Mandarin have not entirely gone to waste ;-)

Tue 11-11-2011: Crossing Tiananmen Square to get to the Forbidden City. The complex is so huge and crowded that everybody goes their own way.

It’s a nightmare to get a taxi once outside, so I decide to walk to the Lama Temple (according to my calculations when consulting the map, it should be around 4,5km). Halfway there I spot a McD across from a metro station. Lunch first, metro second…

The Lama Temple is supposed to be the largest Tibetan temple complex outside of Tibet. The architecture is lovely, and one of the buildings houses a enormous Buddha statue made from a single piece of sandal wood – amazing!

Once I get back to the hotel, I’m exhausted from all the walking around and impressions during the day. After a power nap, we leave for Peking Duck dinner, after which I go back to the hotel instead of visiting a Kung Fu show with the rest of the group. It is again a nightmare to get a taxi, and I already picture myself stranded in the middle of Beijing… Fortunately the staff of the restaurant is willing to help out and they finally manage to get me a taxi. Phew!

Wed 12-10-2011: Final day in Beijing, and following the advice of our tour guide, I decide to visit the park near the Temple of Heaven with S. After getting conned by a cabbie (we agreed on RMB 40 to take us there and all of a sudden he charges us RMB 60, because of the heavy traffic. We end up settling on RMB 50 to avoid any further discussion), we enter the park where it seems half of Beijing is either dancing, tai chi-ing, playing cards or mahjong and what not. In Europe, people would look at you like you are crazy, but here it is common place to exercise and socialize in a public place.

Across the street from the park is the Pearl Market, a big building with all sorts of shops. S and I only make it across half of the bottom floor before we escape from all the eager sales people. Not our cup of tea. We take the metro back to the hotel (which proved to be very easy – the cab would have been completely unnecessary!) where we split up since I want to get some supplies for the train ride to Xi’an. I end up eating an early lunch with the same dish at the same restaurant as Monday night. YUM!

We leave for the station at 2pm. On the train, N and I are again doomed to the top bunks. Another restless night…

Happy Songs

2011-10-25T23:04:00.002+02:00

Do you know that feeling when you are listening to some music (for instance on your MP3-player) and a certain song comes on, and no matter how crappy your day may have been until then, or how foul your mood may be, it just brings a smile to your face???

Here are some of my Happy Songs:

makes me want to get up and dance ;-)

not my favourite version, but still pretty cool

love the Scottish accent!
{for those wondering, "havering" is (quoting the band here) "talking shite" ;-) }

supercool song!

this song always reminds me of the movie Strictly Ballroom, one of my favorites

similarly, this song always reminds me of The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, another one of my favorites. And yes LotR-fans, that is indeed Elrond as a tranny - LOL

Awesome song!

Love this song!

love that guitar

toora loora toora loo-rye-aye!

classic song in a classic movie

Love Marvin's version, CCR's is OK, but this one is my favourite!

Moves like Jagger

2011-10-25T21:56:00.001+02:00

I know, I'm a bit late jumping on the band wagon since this kinda was 2011's Summer hit...
I'd heard this song on the radio but never realised it was by Maroon 5 and Christina Aguilera (the combo might seem odd until you know that Adam Levine and Christina were/are both judges on the Voice). Anyways, once I knew the artists, I had to download it - pretty cool song! Until you can't get it out of your head for 3 days straight, that is... ;-)

Here's the video:

The joys of jet lag

2011-10-24T07:55:00.000+02:00

This is getting ridiculous: for the 3rd night in a row, I woke up at 4.30 a.m. (it is 6 hrs later in China...)
Shouldn't I be over this jet lag by now??? YAWN!

My trip in numbers

2011-10-23T20:18:00.001+02:00

1 world wonder
2 train rides
3 flights
5 boat trips
at least 5 Unesco World Heritage Sites
6 cities
7 tour guides
8 beds/bunks
10kg luggage (to)
13kg luggage (fro)
18 fellow travellers
21 days
1687 pictures
approx. 2360 miles
approx. 3810km

Back in town

2011-10-22T19:08:00.000+02:00

I just got back from my trip to China early yesterday morning - still battling a killer jet lag ;-)

I was a bit nervous about this trip initially, but that proved to be completely unnecessary. We had a nice group of people, the sights were awesome, and I don't think I've EVER had such delicious food on a trip! YUM! (some of the dishes I tried will certainly make an appearance on my food blog in the near future!)

Photo impression will follow soon.

Off to China!

2011-09-30T18:34:00.004+02:00

Last day of work today, I'm off to China next week - FINALLY! :-D

Squee!

2011-09-27T19:49:00.002+02:00

Excuse me while I am a bit star struck: these past few days 3 of the Ella Bootcamp instructors (and internationally known scrapbookers/stampers) left comments on some of my posts.

Nichol Magouirk, Wendy Smedley and Lisa Dickinson, thank you for your kind words!
(and all of you other commenters too of course!!)

the MotherLOAD - Day 26 | The Final Day!

2011-09-26T22:23:00.021+02:00

YESSSS! I did it!
I completed 26 scrapbook pages in 26 days - I'm pooped! ;-)

Today's prompt was to make a page using your own unique style that you've identified over the course of the MotherLOAD.

Here's my page:

So why is this page typically me?
- I used a neutral cardstock base.
- I used multiple photos.
- I used a very clean, linear design.
- I used small doses of patterned paper.
- I hand-journaled.
- I used minimal embellishments (only alpha stickers for the title).
- I used an A4 format.

Can I just say that I totally love how this LO turned out?? And I didn't even use a sketch!

the MotherLOAD - Day 25

2011-09-25T22:26:00.001+02:00

Today's prompt was to scraplift a page you made earlier this month.

I already 'recycled' several pages during this LOAD, with all the redo's I did and also with my car pages.
However, here's another take on the sketch from day 11:

A field of beautiful purple heather behind the Texel dunes.

BTW, only one more day of LOAD to go! Woohoo!

the MotherLOAD - Day 24

2011-09-24T22:07:00.010+02:00

Today's prompt: be inspired by music and use a song title or lyrics on your page.

Here's my LO:

I made a page about a visit to a Build-a-Bear store and used lyrics from an Elvis song.

the MotherLOAD - Day 23

2011-09-23T22:04:00.008+02:00

Today's challenge: use numbers.

I had considered a page about my tattoos for a while, so this was the perfect opportunity to go ahead an do it.

the MotherLOAD - Day 22

2011-09-22T23:32:00.021+02:00

Today's challenge was to scrapbook an ending, in the broadest meaning of the word.
It could be the ending of a book or film, of a friendschip, or a certain stage in life...

I scrapbooked photos of my different graduation ceremonies (secondary school, American highschool (as exchange student), vocational school and college), the 'endings' within my school career so to speak.

the MotherLOAD - Day 21 | Ella's Bootcamp - Day 3

2011-09-21T23:02:00.001+02:00

Today's ML challenge was another 'blast from the past' - using a shaped photo, which was very hip and happening in the early days of modern scrapbooking (now not so much, haha)

I made a page about last year's World Cup Soccer, which caused severe Orange fever at work ;-)

Incidentally, one of today's 'drills' at Ella's Bootcamp focused on using grids when designing a page.

Though I based this LO on a Pagemaps sketch, it also incorporates a grid.

the MotherLOAD - Day 20 | Ella's Bootcamp Day 2

2011-09-20T23:42:00.037+02:00

Today's ML challenge was to scrapbook an emotion.
I made a page about something that evokes an emotion instead: my grandparents' copy of the Mona Lisa that I inherited. Here's the page:

The story behind it: for as long as I can remember, my grandparents had a copy of the Mona Lisa in their hallway. When I was little, my uncle told me that HE had painted it. I believed this well into my teens until one day I was introduced to the works of Leonardo DaVinci... Whenever I look at the painting (that now hangs in my living room) it always makes me smile ;-)

At Ella's Bootcamp, one of the so-called 'drills' today was about making your own patterned paper using stamps. So I broke out some stamps, and went to work. All 3 colours patterned paper are hand-stamped.
I also tried to pay attention to the 2nd drill from day 1 about combining different patterned papers. I used a bold print (dark brown paper), a text-print (mustard paper) and a more subtle print (rust paper).

the MotherLOAD - Day 19 | Ella's Bootcamp - Day 1

2011-09-19T18:56:00.000+02:00

Today's ML-challenge was to NOT scrapbook chronologically. Since I've abandoned that idea several years ago and already scrap whatever I want whenever I feel like it, this wasn't too difficult for me.

Today was also the first day of Ella's Bootcamp. The first topic was grammar-free journaling, and the ideas included using a pie-chart (for 1 person) or a comparison chart (for more people) to document their routines, quirks etc.

I decided to combine these 2 promps and make a comparison chart of my guinea girls:

(the top photo is their group portrait, and the bottom photos are their 'baby pictures')

the MotherLOAD - Day 18

2011-09-18T23:36:00.000+02:00

We're 2/3rds on the way - woohoo!

Today's challenge was to use this colour scheme:

These colours screamed 'Autumn' to me, so I dug up some old photos that I took several years ago of the Fall colours in a local park. Here's my page:

the MotherLOAD - Day 17

2011-09-17T18:55:00.001+02:00

Today's challenge was to use one of your snack bags (which I didn't make - remember?). Other than that, you were free to do as you pleased.

Inspired by yesterday's LO about my OLD car, I decided to make a similar page about my NEW car:

the MotherLOAD - Day 16

2011-09-16T23:05:00.016+02:00

Today's challenge was to break the unwritten scrapbooking law from the old days that you could only use the a photo once, and to go ahead and use a photo that you'd used before.

I already fulfilled this challenge multiple times during these past 2 weeks having done 4 redo's so far and I had also already used my grandparents' photo from yesterday's LO before.

Since I got a new car today (woohoo!), I decided to redo an old 12x12 page about my previous (and first) car in A4 format:

the MotherLOAD - Day 15

2011-09-15T23:00:00.009+02:00

Today's challenge was to scrapbook a tough topic.
Given the last few months, inspiration for this one came easy (I basically made a page mimicking this blog post...)

the MotherLOAD - Day 14

2011-09-14T22:53:00.014+02:00

Today's challenge was to use stamps on a layout. Not too much of a challenge to me personally, since I often use stamps on a scrapbooking page (even if it's only to stamp some journaling lines so I'll write straight...)

Here's what I did:

As you've probably been able to tell by now, I do a lot of travel pages... This one is about our January trip to Egypt. The sphinx-stamp and journaling stamp are both from Art Impressions.

the MotherLOAD - Day 13

2011-09-13T22:51:00.007+02:00

Woohoo - we're halfway there!!

Today's challenge was to make a page about a ritual that you have.
I decided to do a page about our seal spotting trip at Texel last month instead:

the MotherLOAD - Day 12

2011-09-12T22:45:00.019+02:00

Today we were challenged to use (and I'm paraphrasing here) a crappy photo, because sometimes you want to tell the story even though the photos did not come out as well as you had hoped.

Here's what I did:

The photos in this LO were taken with 3 different devices: 2 photo cameras and a video camera. I used 2 stills (top right and bottom left) from a video my mom shot of the camel ride, and the quality of those is especially bad due to the conversion from film to image...

the MotherLOAD - Day 11

2011-09-11T22:36:00.018+02:00

Today we were challenged to use this sketch that was provided in the daily email:

Here's my page (I stayed pretty close to the original sketch):

Some participants chose to do a page in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I comtemplated doing that as well, but in the end decided to go with a lighter topic...

the MotherLOAD - Day 10

2011-09-10T22:31:00.006+02:00

Today's challenge was to use another of those snack bags that we were supposed to compile during basic training, which I didn't do. So I did my own thing and finished a page that I had already started some time ago about my trip to Nepal in 2007.

the MotherLOAD - Day 9

2011-09-09T17:31:00.001+02:00

Today's prompt was to use the leftover scraps from your previous layouts.
However, I was feeling so frustrated about my health problems that I made a page about that instead:

I blurred the journaling for this post because it's very personal, but I wanted to show it anyway because I really like how it turned out despite its simplicity, especially the photo (love photoshop actions!).

the MotherLOAD - Day 8

2011-09-08T21:23:00.011+02:00

Today's challenge was to scrap about your needs. I took the easy way out and scraplifted the example page ;-) Here's my LO:

I can't live without the internet (or I'll suffer from fanfiction withdrawel...), reading material (be it books, my ereader or magazines) and, of course, my girls!

the MotherLOAD - Day 7

2011-09-07T22:17:00.011+02:00

Today's challenge was to reinvent old scrapbooking techniques & trends such as themed papers and cut out photos.
I chose to NOT follow the prompt again and did another remake of an old 8,5x11" page:

the MotherLOAD - Day 6

2011-09-06T23:23:00.000+02:00

Today's challenge was to use a self-portrait, since scrapbookers tend to spend a lot of time behind the camera and not so much in front of the lense...
I used some pictures that were taken a few weeks ago and made this page:

It's about me having lost approx. 20 lbs since the beginning of the year and being on the right track weight-loss-wise (even though I am not entirely there yet).

the MotherLOAD - Day 5

2011-09-05T17:16:00.000+02:00

Today's challenge was to break some of the (self-imposed) scrapbooking rules, like using another format, supplies or techniques than you're used to.
I broke the rules by not following the prompt (haha) and redid another old LO. This used to be a double 8,5x11" which I converted to a double A4 spread:

{BTW, I can highly recommend going on a whalewatch tour when you are in the Boston area, it was AWESOME!}

the MotherLOAD - Day 4

2011-09-04T17:06:00.000+02:00

Today's challenge was to make a LO using only the bare minimum of supplies. Since I was on a roll converting old LOs, I did another one. This one used to be 8,5x11" and I redid it as an A4 as well (just like yesterday's).
Coincidentally, it didn't need a lot of 'stuff': just some patterned paper & plain cardstock, alpha stickers, inked edges and stamped journaling block with handwritten journaling.
The original had a typed title and journaling, but I couldn't find the old file on my PC and couldn't be bothered to retype it ;-)

the MotherLOAD - Day 3

2011-09-03T16:57:00.000+02:00

During the first 9 weeks of basic training, one of the assignments was to make 4 'snack bags' containing different embellishments and today's challenge was to use one of those snack bags.
Since I didn't do any of the basic training assignments, I didn't have any snack bags prepared and I therefore chose to forego today's challenge.

For some time I've been thinking of converting some old LOs into A4-format, so I redid an old 12x12 LO that I made for an online class a few years ago in order to put it in my binder with all my other travel LOs:

the MotherLOAD - Day 2

2011-09-02T22:44:00.001+02:00

Today's prompt was to make a lay-out about something that made you laugh recently. I used a conversation I had with my colleagues, in which I made a crude comment that shocked them somewhat... ;-)

{I actually gave this some thought: the patterned paper symbolizes my quick wit (haha) and the brown symbolizes my potty mouth ;-) }

Busy day

2011-09-01T22:28:00.000+02:00

I had a busy day today, running from one medical professional to another...
First, I had an appointment with my GP to talk about my burnout-symptoms. Then I went to have my blood tested for my vitamin- and cholesterol levels (the results will be in on Monday). And finally I had an appointment at the dermatologist to have some blemishes removed (fortunately I came up clean a few months ago when I went for my BCC check-up).

I'm exhausted!

the MotherLOAD

2011-09-01T22:23:00.001+02:00

9 weeks ago the MotherLOAD class started at Big Picture Classes. The class consists of 9 weeks 'basic training' and a layout-a-day scrapmarathon from September 1-26.
While I did not actively participate in those 9 weeks basic training, I do plan to do another layout-a-day for the last part of the class, like I did last May.

Today is the first day of the scrapmarathon and the prompt was to scrap a goal.
I decided to make some sort of checklist of the things I need to do before travelling to China next month:

Burnout

2011-08-27T12:56:00.002+02:00

It's been a hectic few months at work, it's been hectic in my personal life and my vitamin D is still extremely low, which isn't helping matters one bit!
So, all in all, it's not too surprising that when things slowed down at work a few weeks ago and we were somewhat getting back into our groove in our family, the sh*t hit the proverbial fan. It's like when people get migraines in the weekend or suffer a heart attack during their vacation because their bodies get to wind down from the day-to-day stress.

The good thing is that I didn't get above-mentioned heart attack. The bad thing is that I sort of experienced a mental breakdown remeniscent of my burnout 5 years ago.
Work I could have handled. The deaths of my grandparents as well. Even coping with the effects of my vitamin deficiency would not have been a problem. Just not all AT THE SAME TIME!

So I'm taking a short break, as per doctor's orders. I took a few days off work and will start working half days next week. I took an (already planned) trip to the island of Texel this past week to empty my mind and relax.

It worked. I'm already starting to feel better.
I'm not quite there yet but I think I stepped on the break in time before I got to the point of no return.

One of the benefits of a burnout? At least you recognize the signs the next time, before things get too much out of hand...

Reflecting on LOAD

2011-05-31T23:47:00.044+02:00

I'm not going to lie, it was HARD at times and kept me up until late at night many days. But... I also really enjoyed it and have a whole album of LO's to show for it. As a matter of fact, I've already signed up for the next edition in September, courtesy of Big Picture Classes, called 'the Mother LOAD'.

What else did I take away from this?
- Though I usually only do double-page spreads, I actually did a lot of single page LO's during this challenge. Turns out I LIKE doing them. Who knew??
- I seem to have a preference for (off) white backgrounds lately: 12 out of the 31 LO's have either a white or off-white base.
- I stepped outside my comfort zone a few time using new techniques. I really liked the creative process.
- At the same time I stayed true to my 'tried and tested'-methods: using sketches (I couldn't scrap without them!), distressing edges (with ink or distressing tool), stamping, handwritten journaling (I'm too lazy to type...), alpha stickers...
- Even though it was hard setting aside time every day to make a LO, it was also really relaxing spending time at something I enjoy doing.
- I scapped a lot of pictures that have been on my 'when-I-get-around-to-it'-pile for a long time. I'm glad they finally made it to my albums!

I can't wait until September for the next round!

LOAD Day 31 - the final day! Whoohoo!

2011-05-31T23:40:00.009+02:00

Today's prompt: create a page about a beginning or an ending in your life you want to celebrate.

Here's what I did:

A page about a major milestone in my life: buying my own house 2 years ago.
I have to say, I LOVE the different fonts in the title, and while the colours of the patterned papers don't exactly match, I'm OK with that. As Ali Edwards would say, I'm 'embracing imperfection' :-)

LOAD Day 30

2011-05-30T23:35:00.007+02:00

Today's prompt: follow your heart. Go with the flow. Don’t measure, don’t scraplift, don’t look for external inspiration. Just do YOUR thing.

Here's my LO:

I took this picture of a prairie dog puppie at the zoo some time ago. He was so curious and came that close to the camera that it created a bit of a fish-eye perspective. I love this photo!
Super simple LO, no sketch used. The leaves are preprinted on craft-coloured cardstock and I cut around the edge of one to slide the photo underneath.

LOAD Day 29

2011-05-29T23:32:00.005+02:00

Today's prompt: look back over the pages you’ve done this month. Has your style changed? Have YOU changed?

Here's my page:

Another tough one for me that I decided to skip. Instead I used pictures of our recent trip to Istanbul.

LOAD Day 28

2011-05-28T23:26:00.010+02:00

Today's challenge: create a page about something you feel passionate about.

Here's what I did:

I honestly had no idea what to do (which is odd since there are many things I feel passionate about, but I guess hindsight is 20/20...) Anyways, I decided to use another set of photos from my Egypt-trip, this time of our boat trip on the Nile in Aswan, which, for me, was one of the highlights of the entire trip.

It was super relaxed, the scenery was nice and the lighting of the setting sun was gorgeous. Good times.

LOAD Day 27

2011-05-27T23:21:00.012+02:00

Todays'challenge: find an older photo and reflect on its meaning.

This is what I made:

This LO is about the trip I took to Egypt in January. The revolution broke out just days after we returned home. The photo is taken from the Citadel, overlooking the city. It shows the overall 'brown-ness' of the city, the dirt, the lack of atmosphere, the poverty of its inhabitants.
While we were there, we discussed how we couldn't believe how the Egyptians seemed to accept their living circumstances. Turns out, they didn't. Good for them.

LOAD Day 26

2011-05-26T23:15:00.020+02:00

Today's prompt: scrap a little thing. Something that seems inconsequential but in reality is the whole world wrapped up into one tiny thing.

Here's my LO:

This may seem silly, but it's a page about the ONE thing you can wake me up for in the middle of the night: the best Patatje Oorlog (war-style french fries) out there in my humble opinion, courtesy of Kalok in Rotterdam. Their peanut sauce is simply deee-vine: sweet and spicy at the same time. YUM!

LOAD Day 25

2011-05-25T23:02:00.034+02:00

Today's challenge: think of a “telling detail” you can share on your scrapbook page.

My page:

I made a page about my unexpected musicality. I've wanted to take music lessons for a long time (I sometimes wish my parents would have encouraged playing an intrument when I was younger), and finally decided to go for it a few years ago and take drumming lessons. I decided to switch to bass guitar after 3 years, since that's also fascinated me for ages.

I'm not very good at either, but that's mainly because I lack the discipline to practice. According to my teachers I could actually be quite good if I put the energy into it. But due to my MANY hobbies and there only being 24hrs in a day, it's just a bit of dabbling for now. Nonetheless, it's another thing I've been able to mark off my 'bucket list' :-)

LOAD Day 24

2011-05-24T23:54:00.009+02:00

Today's challenge: make a wish list layout today, or pick one goal or and create a page about it.

Here's my page:

It's about my goal to visit the eight architectural wonders of the world. So far 5 down, 3 more to go!
The idea is that I can add to this page once I've visited the remaining sights.

LOAD Day 23

2011-05-23T23:49:00.011+02:00

Today's prompt: Pick a story that’s a little tougher to tell. TELL it.

Given last month's events, I knew exactly which story I wanted to tell:

These pictures are pretty special because were taken the day befor my grandmother died, when my aunt, cousin and I were visiting her in the hospital. At that time, she appeared to be getting better and we had a good time talking and being silly. Unfortunately, she took a turn for the worst the next day and died that afternoon.
I'm so glad I visited that day and that I have these pictures to remind me of the last day I spent with her.

LOAD Day 22

2011-05-22T23:42:00.000+02:00

Today's challenge: use only one word as your journaling.

Here's my LO:

It's my cavy Amber gazing longingly to her cagemates from across the room. The title means 'homesick'.

LOAD Day 21

2011-05-21T23:05:00.009+02:00

Wow, 3 weeks in and still going strong! Who would have thought...

Anyways, this was today's challenge: pick a trend that is popular today and try to use it in a way that fits your style, feels natural, and also won’t look absolutely ridiculous in five or ten years.

Bonus challenge: show one of your embarrassing past scrapbook pages that makes yo u contemplate "What was I thinking??"

I'd like to think my style is pretty timeless and I don't get 'sucked in' often by temporary trends.

Here's today's LO:

I don't think this LO is very trendy, but I don't think it will look dated in a few years either. Materials and techniques that could be considered trendy: craft cardstock, (faux) stitching, rubber stamping.

And here's my 'past embarrassment':

I actually don't think it's too bad, although you can tell it was made several years ago when Coluzzle templates were all the rage...

LOAD Day 20

2011-05-20T23:57:00.017+02:00

Today's prompt: start with the design of your page. Then move to photo or story. Leave your embellishing (“decorating”) for last.

I decided to skip this one and go with my usual routine, which is: find photos, choose a sketch, select cardstock & patterned papers to match, and pick out embellishments.

Here's today's LO:

These are photos from last year's art exhibit at a castle ruin close to where I live. The ruin itself was decorated as if it were a fish tank ornament, complete with fish, shells and even an anemone :-)
I picked a patterned paper to match the fish theme and went from there.

LOAD Day 19

2011-05-19T23:53:00.012+02:00

Today's prompt: choose appropriate embellishments for the theme or “feel” of your page.

Here's my LO:

I used photos from one of our annual shopping trips to the garden center to buy new Christmas decorations. Since it's a seasonal event, I chose patterned paper from a Christmas line and used alphas to match the colours.

LOAD Day 18

2011-05-18T23:47:00.015+02:00

Today's challenge: Restraint. Let your layout breathe. Make sure there’s white space. Choose a focal element and let the others play back-up.

This is what I made:

Photo's from last year's trip to Dolfinarium Harderwijk. I only used cardstock, 2 patterned papers, letter stickers and a journaling stamp + ink (I still need to add journaling).

LOAD Day 17

2011-05-17T23:04:00.012+02:00

Today's challenge: find a good page gone bad in your albums. See what you can do to resurrect it.

I decided to pass on this one. Sure, I have plenty of pages that didn't exactly turn out the way I envisioned it. But if I knew how to fix it, I would not have done it 'wrong' in the first place!
I'm also trying to let go of my perfectionism and to 'embrace imperfection' (to quote Ali Edwards).

So, I did something entirely different:

It's a bit of a visual overload even though I only used patterned papers and cardstock, but I used these papers to mimic the mozaics inside the Aya Sofia (though truthfully, these papers would have fitted better with my photos of the Blue Mosque!)

LOAD Day 16

2011-05-16T23:58:00.000+02:00

Today's prompt: choose a plain photo and a plain background, then use embellishments to add the emotion.

Here's my LO:

I used a white background that I sprayed with glimmer mist. I just downloaded an online workshop on embellishment clustering, so I gave that a shot as well.
I went a bit overboard with the stamped swirls, but all in all it's not too bad and it made me step outside my comfort zone a bit.

LOAD Day 15

2011-05-15T23:49:00.011+02:00

Today we had to scraplift a LO by expert Stephanie Howell. I chose this one:

And here is my own interpretation:

(That's my mom and dad who will be celebrating their 40th (!) wedding anniversary later this year)

LOAD Day 14

2011-05-14T23:41:00.012+02:00

Today's challenge was to choose a dynamic colour combination to convey energy and excitement in your layout.

Blue and orange are on opposite sides of the color wheel and therefore complementary. The colours also match the photo's perfectly.
This LO is a bit simple (read: not very exciting at all), but I actually had NO idea what to add to give it a bit more oomph...

LOAD Day 13

2011-05-13T22:37:00.004+02:00

Today's prompt: take your color cues from your photo. Do the matchy-matchy thing if you like.

I boosted the colors of the photo somewhat in Photoshop to make them pop. The blue and green are clearly taken from the peacock's colors.

LOAD Day 12

2011-05-12T22:27:00.006+02:00

Today's challenge: pick a color you DON’T normally use on a layout and combine it with one of your favorites.

I rarely use orange and/or yellow, but I do seem to have a preference for (off-) white cardstock these days...

LOAD Day 11

2011-05-12T01:16:00.000+02:00

Today's challenge was to use black & white, either in your papers, photos or both.
Since I wanted to still have a bit of colour, I used a colour photo instead of converting it to black & white as well.

This is my LO:

LOAD Day 10

2011-05-10T23:17:00.000+02:00

Today's assignment was to find a color combination from nature and use it for your layout.
I had taken these awesome butterfly pictures at Beekse Bergen last year, and I chose my colours from the picture. The end result is a lot more colourful than usual!

LOAD Day 9

2011-05-09T22:02:00.000+02:00

Today's challenge was to use a color from the Paper Source colour palette that spoke to you but that you rarely use while scrapbooking.

I chose 'beet'.

Since I had already picked out the yellow and black polka dot papers to use with my lady bug picture (to play up the lady bug's dots), I was lucky that purple just happens to be the complementary colour to yellow :-).

Here's my page:

LOAD Day 8

2011-05-08T23:09:00.000+02:00

Today's challenge was to enhance your page topic/theme by careful selection of colours (e.g. by grounding a layout in place/time by using specific colours).

I decided to use a scanned copy of a photo taken shortly after I was born, paired with a copy of my birth announcement. I based the use of avocado-green on the dark colour in the birth announcement, and the green patterned paper I selected happened to have a purple flower pattern on the back. For a 3rd pattern, I selected a striped pattern (for easy journaling) that had both green and purple in it.

Can you tell, based on the colours alone, which decade I was born?? (don't peek at the journaling! :-) )

LOAD Day 7

2011-05-07T23:21:00.000+02:00

Today's challenge was to scraplift an existing LO.
Here's my page:

Left: original by Christa Paustenbaugh, published in Creating Keepsakes Magazine issue 10/2010.

Right: my interpretation.

LOAD Day 6

2011-05-06T22:17:00.000+02:00

Today's assignment was to pay attention to allignment (i.e. common margins).
Here's my LO:

The margin to the left and right of the photos was supposed to be the same, but apparently I mismeasured... Oh well...

The title is a play on words.

LOAD Day 5

2011-05-05T22:07:00.000+02:00

Today's assignement was to use a visual triangle.
Here's my LO:

LOAD Day 4

2011-05-04T23:56:00.000+02:00

Today's theme was White Space (for those of you unfamiliar with design, it doesn't have to be white in colour, but rather empty and uncluttered, giving the rest of your layout room to breathe, so to speak).

This is my LO for today:

I struggled a bit with this one, it kept feeling incomplete. I finally added a distressed edge to the photo in Photoshop and reprinted it, and added the stamped photo corner to create a visual triangle.

LOAD Day 3

2011-05-03T23:36:00.001+02:00

Today's theme was EMPHASIS and this is my LO:

I added the burned edge to the photo in Photoshop for a more dramatic feel, using an awesome free action that I downloaded at thepioneerwoman.com.

Life goes on

2011-05-03T20:39:00.000+02:00

Despite the difficult time my mom's family is experiencing at the moment, with the recent death of both my grandparents, it's nice to be reminded that there are still joyous occasions to be celebrated as well.

Earlier today, my cousin became a dad for the 2nd time to a healthy baby boy, Alain!
At almost 9lbs and 52cms, he's off to a good start :-)

LOAD Day 2

2011-05-02T22:11:00.000+02:00

Today's theme was 'contrast' and this is my LO:

I incorporated contrast in the following ways:
- large (focal point photo) vs small (other photos)
- straight lines vs curvy lines (scalloped edge, rounded corners)
- smooth (patterned paper) vs textured (embossed cardstock, chipboard title)
- light (background) vs dark (photos)

It's time for LOAD!

2011-05-01T21:53:00.008+02:00

What is LOAD exactly, you may ask??
It is a month-long challenge hosted by scrapper Lain Ehmann where you make 1 Layout A Day.

I signed up a while ago, and have every intention to just do that: scrap 1 layout a day for an entire month.
We all know how good I am at keeping resolutions (NOT!), so we'll see how far I get :)

Here is today's LO, the theme was 'back to basics', i.e. use only photos, cardstock, patterned paper and minimal embellishments:

In Memoriam

2011-04-29T10:33:00.001+02:00

Jan de Koning *2-12-1925 ~ +17-4-2011

Jannigje de Koning - de Jong *14-8-1927 ~ +27-4-2011

Photo taken on their 56th wedding anniversary 11-5-2006.

They would have been married 61 years this May.

Surreal

2011-04-28T09:29:00.000+02:00

When I visited my grandmother in hospital on Tuesday evening, she seemed to be feeling a lot better: her bloodsugar had stabilized, she was cheerful and the colour had returned to her cheeks.

However, things took a turn for the worst yesterday when she suffered from one major and a few minor heart attacks. The medical staff did everything they could, but she slipped into a coma around 3 p.m. and died at 5 p.m.

To say our family is devastated would be an understatement. Within 10 days, my mom and her siblings lost both their parents.

Hard times

2011-04-26T23:00:00.000+02:00

This past week and a half have been really tough.

Last week, my granddad decided he had had enough. The previous couple of nights had been very rough on him, and he felt he could not take another night like that.
His lungs had gotten really bad lately and he was experiencing more and more difficulty breathing with all the fluid in them.
On Saturday morning I got a phone call from my mom to come to the hospice where he and my grandmom had been residing for the past couple of weeks. After discussing the situation with his doctor, granddad agreed to being administered a sedative. Due to the lack of medication and nourishment, his body would then give up, but with him being asleep, he wouldn't be uncomfortable when his body would finally shut down.

On Saturday afternoon we all said our goodbyes. Sunday morning he was gone.
It can take up to 5 days for a person's body to give up, but thankfully my grandmother did not have to witness such a drawn-out process.

My mom called me Sunday morning around 9.45 to let me know he had passed away. My first question was: what time did it happen? Bizarrely, I had woken up during the night at 3.42 a.m. (I know the exact time because I remember checking my alarm clock) and in my state of semi-conciousness I heard what sounded like a person moaning. My mom informed me granddad had died around 9.30 a.m., but when I got to the hospice some time later, I heard that he had inadvertently woken up during the night around that time! My cousin told me he had also woken up around that same time... My aunt, who spent the night at the hospice to support my grandmother, managed to get him back to sleep.

I consider myself a fairly down-to-earth person, but I do believe there is more between heaven and earth than we aware of...

The funeral was scheduled for Thursday, which obviously was a very emotional day. Although I am at peace with my granddad's death, it's very hard to see my grandmother grieving. My grandparents were together for over 65 years, nearly 61 of them as a married couple (their 61st anniversary would have been next month). I cannot imagine having to miss your spouse after so many years!

On the day before the funeral, we got a scare when my mom was involved in an accident. She was on her bicycle near their house when a dog suddenly ran across the bicycle lane and she was unable to avoid it.
She fell on her face, very hard, and had to be taken to hospital.
Fortunately it was mostly scrapes and bruises, and some suitures in her nose. For a little while, we were afraid she may have broken something or suffered a concussion and would be unable to attend the funeral. Luckily that wasn't the case.

On Friday (the day after the funeral), my aunt took my grandma to the hospital because she was in a lot of pain from a severe attack of gout. The pain medication made her feel very woozy and nauseous, and she spent the better part of 2 days vomiting...
When my parents and I were there on Easter Monday, she scared us terribly by showcasing all the symptoms of an intracranial hemorrhage. She suffered from a hemorrhage a few years ago, so we immediately called an ambulance. They performed a few tests and concluded that she was experiencing hypoglycemia instead (the symptoms are apparently very similar). My grandmom has diabetes and because of the nausea had not been eating much, which caused her blood sugar to drop dangerously low. She was taken to the hospital to be monitored, and we were informed today that she has to stay there for a few more days.

I was telling a friend of mine about these last couple of days and she reminded me that things always seem to happen in threes...
Let's hope these were our 'threes' and things will quiet down form now on, because I don't know how much more stress I can take at this point...

Istanbul

2011-04-01T00:30:00.002+02:00

Just got back today from a 4-day trip to Istanbul with my mom. She turned 60 earlier this month and this was my birthday present to her. She knew we would be going away for a few days but she didn't know where we would be going up until we arrived at the airport on Monday morning :)

I really enjoyed our trip. We stayed at a small hotel near the Topkapi Palace. It was simple, but ideally located in a quaint neighbourhood near all the major sights.

We had a busy couple of days but managed to do most of the things on our wish list. Amongst other things, we visited the Aya Sofia, Blue Mosque, Spice Bazar, Grand Bazar, Topkapi Palace and Basilica Cistern, and took the ferry across the Bosporus to Asia enjoying nice views of the city's skyline. We were also extremely lucky with the weather: despite predictions of rain, it was mostly sunny during our entire stay.

My goal this year is to take a trip every quarter. It can be long, it can be short; it can be far away, it can be close by: as long as I get to go away for a while. And even though it's still March, I've decided this qualifies as the 2nd-quarter-trip after my vacation to Egypt in January :)
Two down, two more to go!

Some of my favorite pics:

Our destination finally revealed at Schiphol Airport :-)

Mystical atmosphere underground at the Basilica Cistern.

Foggy silhouette of the Blue Mosque and Aya Sofia from the ferry.

At the Turkish restaurant (2nd night)

Blue Mosque (a.k.a. Sultan Ahmet Mosque)

Interior of the Aya Sofia.

Aya Sofia by night.

Spice Bazar

Stray cat testing wares at the Grand Bazar...

Interior at the Topkapi Palace.

Shocking news

2011-03-28T00:08:00.000+02:00

Earlier this week our family learned that my aunt's Thai sister-in-law and her 2 young children were killed in a railroad accident near their home in Thailand. My aunt accompanied her brother to Thailand to make the necessary arrangements for their burial.

I can't imagine what their family must be going through at the moment...

Highs and lows

2011-03-24T21:53:00.000+01:00

It´s not going well with my grandfather. He´s lost about 30kgs in the last 6 months, can no longer walk unassisted (and even then only a few steps at a time), is hooked up to an oxygen tank all day and is in constant pain, despite a very high dosage of morphine.
He´s indicated that he no longer wants to live this way, and therefore his doctor has agreed to stop all medication except pain medication. Now it´s a matter of waiting until his heart gives up. It could be days, it could be weeks, it could be months. Honestly, as far as I´m concerned, the shorter the better. This is no way to live, so I hope he won´t have to suffer for too long.

Despite this weighing heavy on my mind, fortunately there are also some bright spots I can focus on. My cavy Pluk is slowly but surely gaining weight. She had an abcess over Christmas and her recuperation took a lot of energy. She went down from 850g to as little as 515g! The vet checked her out a couple of times and determined she has a heart murmur. We even had some x-rays taken, and though her heart did not show any abnormalities, there was a questionable spot near her kidneys. It could be a tumor, it could be kidney failure, they couldn't say without having performed further tests. Since I think extensive poking and prodding would not be beneficial for Pluk´s quality of life (she´s happy and has a good appetite in general) I´ve decided to let things be for now. I did change her diet slightly and lo and behold, she gained more that 100g in the past 3 weeks! Yay!

Another bright spot: my mom celebrated her 60th birthday earlier this month. I wanted to go away for a few days this spring and then decided it would be fun to treat her to a trip for her birthday. She knows WHEN
I´m taking her and for how long, but she still doesn´t know WHERE I´m taking her... She´s constantly trying to have me spill the beans (and she has it narrowed down quite a bit), but I´ve surprised myself in not having blabbed it already :-) The goal is to spring it on her once we are at the airport. I wonder how she'll take it...

One little word

2011-01-06T13:29:00.001+01:00

Ali Edwards is a well-known scrapbooker, and for a few years now she's started the year by letting one little word be the theme for the upcoming year. It's not something that I've thought about much before, until I had somewhat of an aha-moment earlier this week.

After a very hectic 2010, I'm desperately craving some peace and quiet. At the beginning of this week, I was totally stressing out: sick grandfather, sick pet, not feeling well myself, about to go on holiday this Friday, too much to do... So I decided that one of my New Year Resolutions is that I want to look into yoga when I get back from my holiday. And then it came to me: my One Little Word for 2011 could be Peace.

Peace of mind. Peace and quiet. Inner Peace. World Peace ;-) (little 'Miss Congeniality'-joke there, haha)

I think it's a good word. Deep down I'm a glass-half-empty-girl and I need to remind myself often that I should be more light-hearted, take each day as it comes, don't worry too much etc.

Peace. I think it's a lofty goal.

It's 2011! (a.k.a. 2010 in review)

2011-01-01T13:18:00.002+01:00

2010 was a hectic year to say the least. What happened, you ask??

- I started taking bass guitar lessons.
- I passed the CDCS exam.
- I got a new cavy, Amber.
- I survived another reorganisation at work. The 4th one in my 8 years of employment...
- I gained a lot of new colleagues when my department merged with another department.
- Our department moved to another building.
- I was diagnosed with and treated for skin cancer (thankfully I gave into my vanity and went to the dermatologist to have some spots removed or I would never have known!)
- My grandfather's lung cancer came back. Unfortunately he cannot be treated.
- I visited Turkey and Texel for the 1st time.
- I visited Beekse Bergen, Dolfinarium Harderwijk and Palace 't Loo for 1st time.
- I went for a trip on the Spido for the 1st time.
- I went to Paris - again.
- It snowed on my birthday! I cannot recall a time that happened before.
- I started a recipe blog.
- One of my cousins became a father and one of my girlfriends had a 2nd daughter.
- I met a lot of my mother's extended family at a family reunion.
- My trip to Egypt was cancelled and rescheduled to 2011 (next week actually!)
- I attended Red Hair Day this Summer.

Phew, I'm exhausted!

Cute book

2010-11-30T22:47:00.000+01:00

Guess what I came across at the sales dept of Donner (a.k.a. book addict's heaven on earth)?

Tadá:

Some hilarious examples:

The King

Audrey Hepburn
and Jacky O

The Beatles

Charlie Chaplin and
Marilyn Monroe

Chances of me ever knitting one of these dolls? Slim to none.
But I thought this book was just too cute not to have (especially on sale) :-)

HP 7-1

2010-11-21T20:53:00.000+01:00

Sinds deze week draait de nieuwste Harry Potter in de bioscoop - yay!

This week the latesy Harry Potter hit cinemas - yay!

Cancer sucks (2)

2010-09-26T15:42:00.004+02:00

Hoewel de artsen er 3 maanden geleden nog van overtuigd waren dat de vlekjes die ze op m'n opa's longen hadden gezien waren veroorzaakt door ontstekingen, zijn ze daar nu op terug gekomen.

Afgelopen week moest opa weer op controle komen, en het bleek dat de vlekjes groter waren geworden: een teken dat het om uitzaaiingen gaat en niet om ontstekingen.
Binnenkort wordt er in overleg met de longarts gekeken hoe de behandeling verder gaat.

Behalve deze tegenslag, is opa een week of 2 geleden opnieuw gevallen met de fiets. Hij had mazzel dit keer, alleen wat schaafwonden, maar hij had heel verkeerd terecht kunnen komen en weet-ik-wat kunnen breken. De huisarts heeft hem nu min of meer verboden om nog te fietsen, dus zijn mobiliteit en onafhankelijkheid is ook weg.

Niet verwonderlijk dus dat 'ie momenteel nogal teneergeslagen is. En onze verjaardag in december kon weleens de laatste zijn die we samen vieren...

************************************************************************************

Although his doctors were convinced a few months ago that the spots they had noticed on my grandfather's lungs were caused by inflammations, they have now had to take back that assessment.

This past week, he went for another check-up and the spots appeared to have gotten bigger: a sign that they are, in fact, tumors instead of inflammations.
Soon the next course of treatment will be determined, so we'll have to wait what the doctors decide then.

That is not the only disappointment my granddad faced these recent weeks. He took another tumble with his bike, which, fortunately only left him with some scrapes and bruises, but his GP more or less forbade him to go cycling anymore, since another fall could have severe consequences.

Not surprisingly this has left him feeling depressed. It's very well possible that our shared birthday in December will be the last we celebrate together...

Contrast

2010-09-22T23:32:00.001+02:00

The first day of autumn, and one colleague is wearing Birkies, and another one Uggs...

New baby

2010-09-21T21:02:00.004+02:00

Ik had het me nog zó voorgenomen nadat Baloo overleed: voorlopig geen nieuwe beestjes.

Maar ja, toen ik gisteren wat spullen op moest halen bij de dierenwinkel zat ze daar ineens: een klein caviameisje met rood krulhaar en donkere oogjes... Daar kon ik uiteraard geen weerstand tegen bieden!

Dus... zijn het er nu weer 5: Pluk, Lily, Bella, Knabbel en... Amber.

I made a promise to myself after Baloo died that I would not get any new pets for a while.

But when I visited the pet store yesterday to get some supplies, I saw her: a redhaired rex (teddy) cavy-girl with dark eyes... What can I say? I admit it. I caved.

So... we're back to five: Pluk, Lily, Bella, Knabbel and... Amber.

Rock chick

2010-09-18T23:36:00.000+02:00

Sinds vorige week zit ik op basgitaarles, iets wat ik al een tijdje wilde. Het drummen heb ik voorlopig even in de koelkast gezet om me hierop te kunnen storten.

Máár... spelen wordt moeilijk zonder instrument. Dus ben ik vandaag, als vervroegd verjaardagskado van pa en ma, een basgitaar uit wezen zoeken :)

En deze is het geworden:

Nu alleen nog leren erop te spelen...

************************************************************************************

I started bass guitar lessons last week, something I've been wanting to do for a while now. For the time being, I've stopped with my drum lessons so I can focus on this.

But... in order to play, you need an instrument. So today I went to the music store to get myself a bass guitar, an early birthday present from my parents :)

And this is my new toy.

Now all I have to do is learn how to play it...

De Kunsthal Kookt

2010-09-12T21:13:00.001+02:00

Ik las in het Rotterdam-pas Magazine over het Kunsthal Kookt evenement. Tientallen biologische bedrijven zouden daar vertegenwoordigt zijn tijdens een soort Food Event.

Dus ma en ik erop uit met onze Rotterdam-pas :)

We hadden geen idee wat we moesten verwachten en waren dan ook erg verrast over de vele stands en bezoekers. Je kon het zo gek niet bedenken of het was er: stands gespecialiseerd in wijn, kazen, chocola, biologische groenten, bijzonder brood, paddestoelen, honing, sambals, British pies... We keken onze ogen uit en hebben verschillende dingen geproefd en gekocht.

Na een paar uur waren we de drukte een beetje zat en zijn we, bepakt en bezakt met onze aankopen, op huis aan gegaan. Maar het is zeker iets om op de kalender te zetten voor volgend jaar!

I read about a cooking event at the Kunsthal in a local magazine. Tens of eco companies from the area would attend this event, which made my mom and I curious.

We had no idea what to expect and were quite surprised about the number of stalls as well as the large number of visitors. You name it, and it was there: companies specializing in wine, cheeses, chocolate, eco veggies, special breads, mushrooms, honey, sauces, British pies... We spend a lot of time tasting and buying stuff :)

After a few hours, the crowd sort of got to us, so we decided to head home with our purchases. But it definately is something I would want to mark on my calendar for next year!

Dolfinarium

2010-09-06T22:02:00.001+02:00

Ik was er nog nooit geweest, dus toen een collega een kortingskaart kwijt moest, was dat een mooie gelegenheid om er eens naartoe te gaan.

Ma en ik hadden bewust een dag uitgekozen waarop het volgens de website niet zo druk zou zijn, en we hadden mazzel want het was prachtig weer.

Hoewel het park qua oppervlakte niet groot is, zijn er genoeg shows om je de hele dag bezig te houden. Aan het begin van de dag hebben we eerst een soort planning gemaakt welke shows we wilden zien. Dat bleek geen overbodige luxe.

Het leukst vond ik het Roggenrif, waar je roggen en haaien kon 'aaien'. Alhoewel het wel erg raar aanvoelde om zo'n beest aan te raken...

I had never been there before, so when a colleague offered me a discount coupon it was the perfect excuse to visit.

Mom and I had purposely selected a relatively quiet day (according to the park's website) and fortunately the weather was very nice.

Although the park isn't very large, there are lots of shows to visit. We decided to make made a bit of a planning of which shows we wanted to see when we first entered the park, which wasn't a bad idea at all.

I liked the Ray Reef, where you could 'pet' rays and small sharks, the best. Although it did feel weird to touch their skin...

Redhead Day

2010-09-05T21:13:00.003+02:00

Vandaag werd voor de 5e keer de Roodharigendag in Breda gehouden. Wat in 2005 begon als oproep van een fotograaf die op zoek was naar roodharige modellen, is uitgegroeid tot een event dat bezocht wordt door duizenden roodharigen uit Nederland en ver daarbuiten.

Vanwege de verwachtte drukte in Breda, besloot ik met de trein te gaan. En zoals iedere keer wanneer ik met de trein richting Breda ga (wat hooguit eens in de paar jaar gebeurt...), waren er problemen met het spoor. Er was iets mis met de Barendrecht-tunnel, en daarom mochten er geen treinen door. Al het treinverkeer richting Dordrecht werd stilgelegd.

Omdat ik tenslotte toch al m'n treinkaartje had, en naar huis teruggaan om de auto te pakken ook minimaal 45 min zou duren, besloot ik de alternatieve route via Utrecht en Den Bosch te nemen. Al met al duurde het tripje Rotterdam-Breda, waar je normaal net een half uur over doet, nu ruim 2 uur...

Maar goed, eenmaal in Breda aangekomen was het best leuk. Wel apart om zoveel roodharigen bij elkaar te zien.
Je kon glamour-foto's laten maken, een kleuradvies vragen, er waren modeshows en optredens...
Het meest interessant vond ik de lezing over de oorzaak van rood haar van een professor/dermatoloog van het Erasmus ziekenhuis. Het schijnt dat zo'n 50.000 jaar geleden, tijdens de ijstijd, een gen is gemuteerd waardoor mensen in het hoge noorden makkelijker vitamine D op konden nemen (hmmm, dat is dan bij mij toch niet helemaal goed gegaan zeker...).

Hij zette ook een aantal feiten en fabels op een rij:
- Wereldwijd heeft ongeveer 2% van de bevolking rood haar. In de Benelux is dat gemiddeld zo'n 4%, en in Schotland zelfs zo'n 13%!
- Het schijnt echt zo te zijn dat roodharigen een hogere dosis verdoving nodig hebben dan niet-roodharigen.
- Tijdens de klassieke oudheid werd rood haar als iets begerenswaardigs gezien: roodharige slaven brachten vele malen meer op dan niet-roodharigen.
- Dat roodharigen binnen een aantal decennia uitgestorven zijn, is niet waarschijnlijk: er zullen altijd dragers zijn van het gen, en wanneer beide ouders drager zijn, is de kans groot dat hun kind rood haar krijgt (al hebben ze dat zelf niet).
- Het imago van temperamentvol hebben we waarschijnlijk te danken aan de Romeinen, die behoorlijk geïntimideerd raakten door het leger roodharige krijgers (aangevoerd door koninging Boudicea) dat ze op de Britse Eilanden tegen het lijf liepen... Of gewoon aan het feit dat roodharigen nogal assertief uit de hoek kunnen komen wanneer iemand voor de zoveelste keer een opmerking maakt over hun rode haar...

Today was the 5th annual Redhead Day in Breda. What started in 2005 as a photographer's call for redheaded models, has become an event with 1000s of attendants from the Netherlands and far beyond.

Due to the expected number of visitors, I decided to take the train instead of my car. And as usual when I travel in that direction (which only happens once every few years, but still...), there was a delay. Something was amiss with a tunnel outside Rotterdam and no trains were allowed to pass through.

Since I already purchased my train ticket, and going home to get my car would take at least 45 mins, I decided to take the alternative route by train via Utrecht and Den Bosch. The trip from Rotterdam to Breda usually only takes about 30 mins. It took me well over 2hrs...

But, I made it and had a nice time nonetheless. Quite a sight to see so many redheads at one place.
There were photographers available to take glamour-shots, you could get colour-advice for your wardrobe, there were fashion shows and live performances...
I enjoyed the lecture about the origin of red hair from a renowned professor/dermatologist the most. Apparently some 50.000 yeras ago, during the last ice age, there was a gene-mutation to allow people in the northern countries to absorb vitamin D more easily (hmmm, something must have gone wrong with me in that regard...)

He also addressed some facts and myths about red hair:
- Approximately 2% of the world's population have red hair. In the Benelux, it's about 4%, and Scotland tops the ranks with 13%.
- Research has shown that redheads do need a higher dose of pain medication than non-redheads.
- red hair was very popular during the Classical Era: redheaded slaves were much more valuable than 'ordinary' slaves.
- redheads are not on the brink of extinction, as claimed in recent years. There will always be people that carry the gene, and when both parents are carriers they will have a high probability of having a redheaded child (even if they themselves do not have red hair).
- the image of having a fiery temperament is probably due to the Romans who encountered large numbers of redheaded warriors led by redheaded Queen Boudicea while trying to conquer the British Isles... Or it could simply be due to the assertiveness of redheads when having to endure another comment about their hair colour...

Parody

2010-08-22T23:46:00.004+02:00

Het kon natuurlijk niet uitblijven: na de de cartoon-konijnfilmpjes van Twilight (en nu ook New Moon) is er ook een een spoof-versie van de Twilight-saga uitgebracht in de trant van Scary Movie, Vampires Suck. Het schijnt dat 'ie op de 2e plaats staat van hoogste bezoekersaantallen afgelopen week in de VS , na The Expendables...

I guess it was unavoidable: after the cartoon-bunny versions of Twilight (and now New Moon as well), they made a spoof of the Twilight-saga, similar to e.g. Scary Movie, Vampires Suck.
Apparently it had the 2nd highest number of moviegoers in the US last week, after The Expendables...

Giant strawberry?!?

2010-07-24T22:08:00.005+02:00

Pa en ma zijn een weekje op Texel en ik kom het weekend logeren. Met de trein naar Den Helder en dan met de boot naar Texel, waar ze me al op staan te wachten.

Na een late lunch verkennen we het eiland: shoppen in De Koog, de vuurtoren in d
De Cocksdorp, binnendoor weggetjes om mooie visplekken te vinden voor pa waar 'ie later deze week kan gaan zitten...

Onderweg komen we langs verschillende bordjes die de weg aangeven naar De Reuzenaardbei.

Een reuzenaardbei? Dat klinkt apart. Net zoals van die 'attracties' in Amerikaanse gehuchten, bijvoorbeeld 'the World's Largest Ball of Twine' ofzo (die overigens te vinden is in Branson, Missouri waar ik een aantal keer ben geweest, maar dit heb ik toen toch effe over het hoofd gezien...).

Dus wij op zoek naar de reuzenaardbei. Hoe zou 'ie eruit zien? Een groot fiberglass gevaarte?? En hoe groot is groot? Dit willen we weleens zien!

Na zeker een half uur rondrijden (da's op zich al vrij knap op een eiland van 25x8km... En pa maar braaf onze richtingaanwijzingen opvolgen: 'Daar staat weer een bordje! Hier naar rechts, pa!') was daar ein-de-lijk de Reuzenaardbei: een boerenbedrijf met een kraampje (in de vorm van, inderdaad, een reuzenaardbei...) waar ze aardbeien verkopen. En ook nog een grote kunststof aardbei op het terrein :)

P.S. er blijkt een speciale 'World's Largest'-website te zijn! Handig voor toekomstige tripjes naar de States :)

My mom and dad are vacationing on Texel, one of the Wadden Islands in the north of the Netherlands, this week and I'm staying over for the weekend. I took the train to Den Helder and caught the ferry to Texel, where they picked me up at the pier.

After a late lunch, we decided to explore the island a bit: windowshopping at De Koog, the light tower at De Cocksdorp, little backroads to find the perfect fishing spot for dad to try out later in the week...

While driving, we came across these road signs with 'De Reuzenaardbei' (Giant Strawberry).

Giant strawberry?? That sounds oddly interesting. Reminds me of these American small-town 'attractions' like 'the World Largest Ball of Twine' (which, incidentally, can be found in Branson, Missouri, a town I've visited a few times, but for some reason I always missed said ball of twine...)

So off we go, trying to find this giant strawberry. What would it look like? Some huge fibre glass monstrosity?? And how big are we talking about here? We want to see this thing!

After a good 30 mins of driving around (which is a feat in and of itself on an island that is only 25x8km... And my dad was a saint, diligently following our directions: 'Another sign! Turn right here, dad!') we fi-nal-ly found the Giant Strawberry: turns out it's a strawberry farm with a road-side stall (shaped like, you guessed it, a giant strawberry..) where people can buy fresh strawberries. AND they also had this a big plastic strawberry in the yard to boot :)

P.S. I did some Googling and found a website dedicated to 'World's Largest'-attractions! This may come in handy for future trips to the States...

Hilarious!

2010-07-14T22:29:00.002+02:00

Ik las dit fanfiction verhaal online waarin wordt verwezen naar de website 'Texts From Last Night', een verzameling waargebeurde sms-jes.

In één woord: HI-LA-RISCH!

I was reading this fanfic story online that mentioned the website 'Texts From Last Night', which is a collection of real-life text messages.

One word: HI-LA-RIOUS!

Madness

2010-07-12T22:50:00.000+02:00

Nederland in de finale van het WK voetbal, wie had dat ooit gedacht?? Ik niet in ieder geval. En hoe langer ze in de running waren, hoe oranje-ner Nederland werd...

Ik heb de wedstrijd bij mijn ouders gekeken, samen met een oom en tante, nog een oom en een neef. Ik ben niet zo van het voetbal, en vond hun reacties eigenlijk veel leuker om naar te kijken: behalve mijn tante en mijn vader is de rest namelijk bloedfanatiek :) Volgens mijn neef was 'ie in járen niet zo nerveus geweest voor een voetbalwedstrijd...

Geen mooie wedstrijd (volgens m'n vader zou 'ie de tv allang hebben uitgezet als het niet om de WK-finale ging geweest...), en het kwam uiteindelijk op de allerlaatste minuten van de verlenging aan.

Over 4 jaar weer een poging??

The Dutch in the WorldCup final, who would have thought?? Not me, that's for sure.
And the longer they stayed in the tournament, the more orange-coloured Holland got...

I watched the match at my parents' home with my aunt & uncle, cousin and another uncle. I'm not really into football, so I enjoyed watching their reactions more than I did the actual game: except my dad and aunt, the rest is super competative :) My cousin said he hadn't been this nervous about a match in years...

The match itself wasn't very nice (my dad claimed he would have switched off the tv in a heart beat if it hadn't been a WorldCup final...), and in the end it came down to the last minutes of the game.

Another go in 4 years??

Three times a charm

2010-07-10T22:36:00.000+02:00

... maar wanneer Opa binnen 1 maand 3x in het ziekenhuis beland gaat de lol er toch een beetje af.
Eerst werd 'ie met een op hol geslagen rikketik van de huisarts doorgestuurd, de week erop moest 'ie op controle komen voor z'n longen (gelukkig ziet het er goed uit) om 2 weken later van z'n nieuwe electrische fiets te vallen en z'n elleboog te breken...

Ik heb 'm vorige week een beterschapskaartje gestuurd. Of 'ie al in aanmerking kwam voor kwantumkorting...

... but when Gramps ends up in the hospital three times in one month, a bit of the charm gets lost.
First his GP sent him along because his heart rate was irregular, the following week was his scheduled check-up appointment for his lungs (fortunately everything looked OK) and then 2 weeks later he was test riding his new electrical bike and took a tumble, causing a broken elbow.

I sent him a get-well-card last week. And asked whether he was eligible for some kind of frequent visitor discount already...