Mlle in de Grote Appel

toodaloo!

2009-06-18T23:44:00.005+02:00

I've moved! I'm quick... I know it!

Please note that I will not be posting on this blog any longer (unless I end up hating Wordpress)

You can find me HERE from now on. I just set this up, so I have a lot of work to do before it looks the way I want it to.

x

2009-06-18T22:40:00.003+02:00

I'm going to ditch Blogger. I've been thinking about it for a long time, and today another person suggested it and I think it's just long overdue.

Whilst I plot my move, enjoy this rather dull layout which is one of maybe 10 sad and outdated templates that Blogger offers.

x

night time doings

2009-06-18T21:51:00.007+02:00

After a stressful day in which nothing is yet resolved, I decided to take a bottle of Spanish red and a glass up to my room to "contemplate life's inner workings" but I got side tracked in Google Reader and found this business card tutorial at Luxa.

What did I think of the tutorial? Very easy and straight forward, although the author has obviously taken steps in his design that he doesn't list, so achieving the same look would take some degree of intuition as you need to apply some text effects and play with your layer settings.

Finally, the author refers to the back of the card although there is no visual example. I think if a total beginner were doing this, they would perhaps struggle to design the back of the card keeping the front and back relative to one another and it may have made this tutorial more complete if the author touched on it a bit more.

I decided to loosely follow the design after I had issues downloading the floral element. Instead I just used one of the brushes that I already had loaded and for all intents and purposes I think it's fine. Keep in mind folks, I do not have a design company or a logo, or any idea what I would call my business. Lola was my kitten when I lived in Brussels, and sometimes I use her name as a filler for these types of exercises.

Final thought: this was fun, easy, and possible to accomplish even after 3 glasses of wine. Not bad!

Luxa

so um, yeah....

2009-06-18T15:17:00.002+02:00

So, last night I received an email from my advisor at SCAD to congratulate me on being accepted to the graphic design program as a transfer student (hooray for me!) She also informed me that I was awarded a scholarship of $3,000/year from the school for my artistic abilities. After the initial "here's what you get" shpeal, she then listed generic FAQs for new students.

The very first step apparently is for me to pay them my non-refundable deposit of $500.00 to secure my place. AFTER that, I can access my account online to view my financial aid paperwork and register for classes.

Well, even though I've filled out my FAFSA, I haven't received any information about how much of my tuition was covered by Stafford Loans and all those government sponsored loans that usually take care of a lot of your balance. I've not seen anything.

So I emailed her and said, hey look, I need to know how much money I need to cover before I am sending you 500 bucks!

She responded and said that I hadn't applied for any "Alternative Loans" (which btw, I don't know what that is) and so, aside from the scholarship, I am responsible for the rest of the tuition (uh, 23,000 dollars for this year) and would I like to pay that balance out of pocket, since classes start next week.

Uh, yeah, let me just reach deep into my pocket and pull 23 thousand dollars out of it. No worries.

So, I'd like to take this moment to say that it is INSANE that for the amount of my measly little scholarship, EU citizens can pay for an entire year of tuition + books and I am sitting here wondering A. Hrmm... what lender with approve me a loan for 23,000 dollars? B. Hrrmm... HOW much money do I owe in college loans already? Oh, enough to buy a house and a car... that's right.

So as it looks right now, I am postponing my entrance to the school for September and I am not happy about it at all. I'm also considering just saying screw it and going to school here in Leiden. The tuition is half that, and at least I can talk to someone face to face instead of waiting all day for a 3 line response from some snotty 20 year old asking, "So you'll be paying out of pocket, I assume?"

No Courtney with a southern accent. I am NOT paying out of pocket you silly twat!

tie my hands behind my back, please?

2009-06-18T14:57:00.005+02:00

I wanted to write something just now and then I thought that someone who is looking at me as a potential hire might Google my name and find this blog and not appreciate it. Maintaining privacy or anonymity on the Internet seems somewhat difficult in today's world, and I have the feeling that I've already made too many careless errors in the past that can't be fixed. For example, once I Googled my name and found a very funny blog post by some teenager with a friend of the same name as mine. In the blog, they wrote something about this person discussing sex, or sex toys, or something very funny. Well I posted that in my blog, with my name in the text, and wouldn't you know it...that particular post shows up in my name search. After I realized it, I removed my name from the text but it still shows up. Dang!

I was actually halfway through writing about how next week I have my first interview and in an effort to express my insecurities and fears about interviewing with a HUGE international company, I was going to write this joke about commonly asked interview questions, and how I might blow them by answering incorrectly (or vomiting, which would also not bode well for me). As I snickered at my witty responses, it dawned on me that I need to be more careful with what I write and so I deleted it. I don't know if I am disappointed in myself for bowing to my own fears or in the fact that so many people have been fired or gotten in trouble for putting a lot less on the web and it seems like a real concern to have.

Anyway, it's true, my first formal interview (EVER... in my life) is next week. Needless to say, I am totally freaked out. I have the next 7 days to obsess over it... because let's face it, you never know what to expect:

sleepy time

2009-06-17T01:49:00.002+02:00

since I just posted that other terribly indulgent and overly ornate, yet inviting and sinful bed... I thought I would add this one. I can honestly say that I love this bed. I'm attracted to the almost luxurious yet shabby look of it... (although the duvet they're using is fugly.)

I like worn looking things and I have no idea what that says about me. I mean, I wouldn't want a whole room full of fluff and doilies at all, but a nice balance of old and new, clean lines and some texture suits me quite well. - and that's my final random thought for the evening! slaap lekker!

my life is a video game

2009-06-16T23:26:00.004+02:00

Today was a flurry of obstacles (rolling barrels, man eating plants, and even a fire world) in my path to finding a job, however, I did manage to make both of my appointments and by the end of the business day, I have my CV going forward for 3 positions and a 4th on hold until the position is officially posted. Sooo... let's see how it goes. In the meantime, I'll be playing minesweeper.

exploding dog

getting cozy

2009-06-16T01:25:00.003+02:00

I'm sat here typing this before I wander off to my bed. In truth, my bed is about 4 feet away from me- so I guess I'll stand up, turn around, and I'll be on the bed and under the blankets in just 2 steps. There's no wandering in that, is there?

I happen to like my bed. It's really small and it looks like it was purchased from an outdated hospital ward. Just sort of plain black metal. I can't say that I would want the bed that's pictured, but looking at my bed right now and then at this one, I wonder if it wouldn't be a fun indulgence.

Tomorrow I have to be at a job recruitment agency in Rijswijk for intake #4 and then it's straight to #5 in Amsterdam. I hope these lead to something... anything.

a busy day ahead...

2009-06-15T15:01:00.001+02:00

It's always those days when I have heaps to accomplish that I stall at the laptop blogging.

hot or not?

2009-06-15T13:53:00.002+02:00

Ohhh.... I don't know. I like the sofa and the record player. I can imagine lying there on a Sunday afternoon with a book, listening to Miles Davis. But the cat? I don't think I would want him looking over my shoulder.

sfgirlbybay

priorities

2009-06-15T13:51:00.001+02:00

sfgirlbybay

marketing for dummies

2009-06-13T01:00:00.003+02:00

call me what you want, old, lame, out of touch, uptight, or on the flip side, informative, thoughtful, insightful... your choice (there's also full of crap, boring, and other rude things, again, up to you) but I happen to think that there is something so completely wrong with Hello Kitty as a wine. There are soooo many reasons that I think this idea sucks eggs. One, it's tacky, not clever, and not even cute. This looks like something Gwen Stefani would come up with...

Then there's the issue of well, this is a character that children follow. I suppose it could be confusing for them to see a bottle of Hello Kitty grape juice that they aren't allowed to have. I'm sure someone out there (moi?) could also suggest that young girls will want to drink it because at the end of the day, the character sells and kids will see it as an extension of the product Look I don't care about kids drinking, because they do and they will continue to, so there's no point in trying to prevent it, but this is practically an invitation. How about Hello Kitty cigarettes? Did I mention that the wine is sold with pink rhinestone crystal studded goblets?

Final thought: I hate it, I hate the idea, and I hate the fact that dumb ass people who don't know anything about wine will buy it. Oops... have I gone off on a tangent?

via: Wine Spectator

catering to negligence

2009-06-12T17:53:00.004+02:00

I've mentioned my disappointment with the fact that the Netherlands isn't as forward thinking about recycling as it is about other hot topics. I've managed to set a no excuses standard in this house that we recycle every piece of paper and glass that we can but when it comes to aluminum and plastic, there's nothing more that I can do. I've contacted the local garbage people to find out if there is a location for bringing these types of items, but haven't found anything promising. With that in mind, I have tried to minimize the food items that I purchase that are in those materials, such as plastic trays for pre-chopped veg and I choose glass jars of food product instead of aluminum.

I think, that if the Netherlands doesn't see that it is feasible to recycle across the board then at least they could make small changes in how their products are sold. For example, in the US there is a national supermarket chain called Whole Foods which specializes is selling natural products and organic foods from companies which package their goods using recycled materials. Today, I came across a blog post on the Sustainable is Good site which discusses how Whole Foods has made a move to eliminate unnecessary packaging waste often created by in-store bakeries. They've sought to solve this waste issue by using a product called Renew-a-Pakthat is manufactured by Biosphere Industries which is made from 100% renewable materials that allows them to bake in the package, sell it in the same package, where is can then be used at home in the oven or microwave and when the consumer finally disposes of it, it is 100% compostable. That's a pretty impressive zero waste concept.

If supermarket chains here made small changes in their mentality on packaging, much of the waste that we create would not end up sitting in a landfill in a million years. I'd like to know why the initiative hasn't been taken and why people here seem undaunted by that fact. That's food for thought, that is.

flip & tumble

2009-06-12T17:17:00.006+02:00

There are a few things that I do enjoy in life, and if the recipe is right, I like it even more. In this case, the recipe is equal parts: affordability, style, innovation, practicality

flip and tumble have designed these super cool reusable and well designed bags that come in a lot of colors and patterns (style)

they are quite affordable at 9 USD for 1 to 3 bags, 8 USD if you buy 3 to 6, and 7 USD for 7 or more (this earns them high scores for being affordable but ALSO for great marketing)

the detail that ultimately sold me, is the fact that they fold up into a peach sized ball in a matter of seconds (holy crap practical!) So you never have an excuse for leaving it at home.

watch me (I'm serious, watch it, it's the innovative part)

Unless you're in Norway or Japan, you'll have to make your purchase online. In the US, you can get up to 7 bags for a flat shipping rate of 4 USD. International purchasers have to go through the order process before they can find out how much it will cost.

for boys too!

flip & tumble

sugary goodness

2009-06-12T16:44:00.004+02:00

donuts... mmmh. Admittedly, I don't go out of my way to eat donuts, but there's a bit of me that will always have a soft side for them. I think in America they're a lot more popular, so it could be a cultural thing although I did see some crazy orange donuts here in the Netherlands around Queen's Day, so who knows really. You'll have to check back in the future for my follow up post,"The Origin of the Donut"

Anyway, I was over at Web Designer Wall and found out that they're having a Breadou donut giveaway! At first glance I thought, uh, how do you mail donuts? But then I read on and saw that Breadou donuts aren't for eating, they're actually squishy little rests for your wrist when you're on the 'puter. An odd detail that I should mention here, is that it actually smells like real bread. I'm not a huge fan on non food items (candles, incense, memory foam wrist rests) smelling like food, but these are so awesome looking that I felt compelled to share the link here so you can try to snag one!

Post a comment on their site by June 26th to enter.

FYI: Breadou also sells their product line via their website. If you want double wrist support, try their Breadou Loaf and if you have a temper, you may like their stress roll.

for Di...

2009-06-11T18:00:00.003+02:00

a beautiful revolution

did you notice?

2009-06-08T12:48:00.003+02:00

Yes, I was the person at the train station who got off her bike and walked it down the ramp to the parking area even though everyone else rides down at full speed. I then spent the next 5 minutes looking for a good spot to shove my bike, because I am still not sure what degree of shoving or stacking is appropriate and what may get my bike taken by the city. You may also have noticed that I did not have a bike bag, and so I tied my work bag to my bike and secured it with my bike lock... I know it looks funny, but it works most of the time! Oh, and by the way, I didn't mean to make you miss your train because I was afraid to pass that family that was riding with 4 babies on one bike and so you were stuck behind me. Hey, I'm a foreigner - what do you want from me?

330 kilometers of history

2009-06-07T23:37:00.006+02:00

Today began at 6:50 am, when my mobile phone buzzed me awake. I had a horrid night of half sleep and felt exhausted which was worrisome considering the fact that we were being picked up around 8:15 for a day trip to shoot some photos. Because I was using the Lesser Canon (but still 1000 times cooler than my trusty point and shoot) and I was going to try out shooting in RAW, I tried my best to be a good sport and keep myself together despite my low energy levels ( I think I did a good job Di, don't you?)

Anyway, we drove a little over an hour away, to the village of Mesen where we were granted access to an old abandoned brick factory. We paid, but we were given permission to shoot all day long (although he was adamant that nude photography wasn't allowed... of course we were sorely disappointed by this fact, since were were looking forward to being naked in the rotten old building, but we rallied and persevered despite the set back). The factory was everything you'd want as a first time abandoned building photo op, as it was full of ragged old furniture and relics of the past. We were only permitted to see a small area of the vast series of buildings, and I can only assume that it had something to do with safety because this place is over a hundred years old and it hasn't been touched in over 40. Every nook and cranny held treasures... old decomposing Dutch clogs, a super cool ancient radio, milk jugs, tools, plates, equipment, tea pots and a stove, and there was even an old German bunker in the basement and some creepy old bombs, oh, and stinky sheep too.

We wandered from the factory over to the "city center" (it's a village of 3.5 square km so I don't know if this really qualifies as a center, but basically the place where all the stuff is) for lunch at a tea room and then a visit to the church and through some gorgeous fields to the Island of Ireland Peace Park, which was established as a memorial to fallen Irish soldiers during WWI. Ironically, Mesen is the smallest village in all of Belgium, and yet the Battle of Messines was fought here, which was a precursor to the Battle of Ypres in 1917. Some 19 mines were blown up across the area in order to halt the Germans and I don't know if it's true, but Ive been told that the sound of the explosion was so loud that it was heard as far away as Dublin!

I can't say how I felt exactly upon seeing the rolling hills of Belgian farmland before me, but it was so familiar to me and I could have walked around aimlessly all day long taking it in. I miss Belgium so much. It really is such a stunning country... sigh.

OK, back to the story, so after we wrapped up at the Peace Tower and had some drinks, we hopped back in the car and went to Ypres. I've heard a lot about the city, but I had no idea how beautiful it was going to be! I was bombarded from all angles by the gorgeous buildings surrounding the Lakenhalle and couldn't take 10 steps without seeing something that I wanted to get a shot of. Ypres was pretty much destroyed in 1917 during the Battle of Passchendaele and apparently it's is one of the first cities where chemical warfare was used, which helps to escalate the fact that this particular region of Belgium hosted some of the most gruesome and deadly battles in the first World War. As a result, it is a city fiercely dedicated to the memory of the thousands of fallen soldiers who fought against the Germans. There's a beautiful memorial in the city called "The Menin Gate" which lists the names of fallen soldiers with no known grave. What is amazing to me is that since 1928, The Last Post has been played every single night by buglers to commemorate the British soldiers that were lost at the Battle of Ypres (except the 4 years that the city was occupied by the Germans during WWII.) This weekend the crowd was larger than normal because of the anniversary of the Invasion of Normandy so I couldn't see too much, but it was nice to experience the ceremony.

I should also mention that the day began cool with overcast skies. On the way to Mesen, it rained a bit and when we arrived at the factory the sun was poking through in patches. While Di and I were at the Peace Tower, the sun was warm and the sky was blue as ever with huge fluffy clouds everywhere. After we arrived in Ypres, it poured like mad for a bit, sending patio diners running in all directions seeking cover and then as quickly as it came, the clouds dispersed leaving behind deep blue skies and a lovely end to the day. In Belgium I would have expected nothing less.

Before today, I had visited spots along the Maginot Line in France and some bunkers in Ostend, but I'd never really taken the time to think about the impact that the war had on life in those regions. As an American, you learn about the war in school, but it's so far away from everything that you know that it's hard to feel astrong connection to it all and certainly not in the way that people do when huge areas of their country have been destroyed by it. Writing this tonight though, I feel a new found interest in the subject and I want to spend more time wandering and learning about the history of places that I visit. This entire day was such an enriching experience and I feel privileged to have been invited along with 3 truly amazing photographers (and lovely people.) Thank you!

Photos to follow, but now, I am dead, and I need to sleep.

yesterday was about

2009-06-06T10:48:00.003+02:00

Conjugating verbs on the train. A feeling of being back home. Westmalle Tripel in the sun. Framing art. Persian chicken. Chatty Belgians (it's true!). Beer talk. Too much wine. Finishing the evening with a trip to the night shop for some chocolate.

Today is about a little kiwi named Sahara and her ballet recital. Later with some luck we'll be dining al fresco as I've heard that Gert plans to make a huge salad for dinner... and then there's tomorrow when I'll be behind the lense of the Canon 400D at Flanders Field and an old brick factory (although getting into the factory is shaky at the moment, so we'll see how that works out). Either way I'll be trailing behind some impressive photographers... so excited!

Antwerpen

2009-06-05T11:57:00.002+02:00

There's something so mysterious and sad about this woman. I look at her and wonder how many years she's been waiting at this doorway in the center of the city. I think that she could have been waiting here before my grandparents were even born, and that she's weathered countless bitter cold winters, sunny days, and seen complete lifetimes pass her by.
Her face, the way it's aged, or how it was carved leaves her looking scarred and shy, but she's quite demure and lovely, isn't she?

Di

2009-06-05T11:47:00.002+02:00

This woman is in fact one of my favorite people in the whole wide world. This weekend she has a photography exhibition opening in her city of Antwerpen, and I am feeling pretty warm inside at the idea that I'll be able to help out with hanging it all and be there to watch her become the star of the evening on Saturday. I hope that she allows me to use the lesser Canon to follow around as her personal paparazzi...

i like this photo

2009-06-04T23:26:00.002+02:00

Mainly due the the use of color and how the age of the fan helps to set a tone for the rest of the style. It's like a tiny glimpse of a beautiful Craftsman style home. sigh*

I have a friend in Den Haag who has a pretty 2 bedroom house (or apartment really) with a fairly large garden. The entire place is full of fun architectural details, such a pocket doors, 2 fireplace mantels, a wood burning stove... and then there's the 4 glass doors looking out over the completely untouched (but ripe for planting) garden and patio. ooh la la.

We were having dinner together just a few weeks ago, and in true form, I mentioned that she could use a house make over. She agreed, and said, "I'll pay you to do it" and awww, my heart just went pitter patter and my head began spinning with ideas and excitement (I hid this from her so I could space out the excitement and keep her interested long enough to want to really do this). We discussed a little bit about paint of course, selling her sofas, the addition of rugs, hanging art, curtains, and even - her getting a quote to rip down the wall between her kitchen and dining area. WOW.

Yesterday I sent her a proposal, or more of a presentation of images in the hopes that I could pinpoint what direction she'd like to take, and her response was pure elation and an invitation for dinner next week, to lay out a budget and "get things moving." I think it will be a bit more difficult to do this here in the NL, since it seems like the affordable shops are IKEA and IKEA and the other shops are all super expensive. It will take some real perseverance and resourcefulness. I've even thought about making a trip back to the US with empty luggage to secure some of the textiles and items that I'd like to be able to have access to within a tight budget. I guess we'll see what happens though.

I cannot explain just how excited I am about this and I really hope that we do this!

Amsterdam

2009-06-04T23:25:00.002+02:00

my house

2009-06-04T23:20:00.004+02:00

Just kidding. This is a little bar by my house that I like a lot. Apparently this is a bar where old ladies like to hang out. There's also a dog who growls at you when you go to the bathroom.

Queen's Night

2009-06-04T22:08:00.011+02:00

I went to see the Yeah Yeah Yeahs in Amsterdam on Queen's Night. There were different points throughout the show where I thought Karen O was amazing, and others not so much. This was one of the amazing times. She wore this crazy mask while performing the only song on the new album that I like, "Heads will Roll"... it was great to watch the show from the balcony and see the crowd freaking out. I'm glad I went, although I wish I'd had a nice camera because she moves so much and my little point and shoot was just struggling to capture any clear shots of Karen. In the end, I settled for blurry shots, going for the "abstract" effect.

I ate frietjes met samurai sauce at Leidse plein afterward.

This is a death trap ride. Would you go on it?

a message from your sponsor...

2009-04-30T21:37:00.004+02:00

a beautiful revolution

Leiden

2009-04-28T03:26:00.004+02:00

Leiden

2009-04-28T03:17:00.003+02:00

siren

2009-04-28T02:55:00.002+02:00

chasing bloemen

2009-04-28T00:08:00.002+02:00

meet some of my neighbors

2009-04-27T23:16:00.005+02:00

One of my favorite things about living in the Netherlands is that there are so many birds! Back home I was quite the novice birdie, with my 2 feeders and little "who's at my feeder?" book. Unfortunately we don't have any suitable bird friendly spots in our teeny tiny itsy bitsy patio, so I like to walk over to the water by the house and check out the scene.

Of course I have been really enjoying spring, because there are SO many babies! They're everywhere and I've found that I have to go and count them every day or two just to see who's left, because it seems like they are preyed upon by the sea gulls and local cats. At first I was sort of gutted at the realization, but really, if you're going to enjoy observing nature, then you have to accept these things.

I think it's really cute though how when the babies first hatch they stay so close to their mother, and within a week they're zipping all over the place, exploring and chasing mosquitoes. occasionally there will be one who is a bit too brave and it goes off exploring and doesn't realize that everyone else has moved on. Once it's realized, the baby will begin chirping loudly and swimming at full speed towards them to catch up. Yes, I realize that I am a complete geek.

Anyway, this is one of the "families" that I've been visiting. They're a lot bigger now.

Saturday

2009-04-27T23:07:00.007+02:00

Recently I discovered that there was a terrace on the top floor of V & D here in Leiden. There's a little place where you can get some nibbles or coffee and enjoy a very pretty (and perhaps the highest in the area) view of the city center. At times it can feel like you're experiencing a scene from Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds", but in this case the gulls are more interested in your food than they are in killing you.

how was your weekend?

2009-04-27T01:33:00.007+02:00

My hell weekend is over, but a new week complete with new assignments begins tomorrow.

It should say an apple a week, because I have to submit one for each week of my illustration course. This is my week 3 design.

The 3 page illustration:

In all honesty, these are no where near finished. I think most people who know me are aware of the fact that I am not pleased with my courses, and a primary issue that I have is the rushed time line placed on us to do assignments. I would rather create portfolio quality work and unfortunately I had to submit this as is. I'm going to change the layout of the text before I add this to my portfolio, which I will be using to apply to SCAD next month.

so, what are you doing this weekend?

2009-04-25T02:18:00.008+02:00

I'm going to be sitting on my green desk chair for the next two days illustrating this children's book for an assignment. It's nearly 3:00 am and I have just finished the first of 3 required illustrations. This is a first draft. I think I should have just scribbled something out like the rest of the class, but I get so caught up in little details. This took me 6 hours and I still have to do the moon and fix the text and some bunny details. That bunny took me 5 of the 6 hours to make! He's cute, so I'm okay with it. If you click on the images you can see them with better quality.

taking care of business

2009-04-24T11:15:00.001+02:00

I think we can all say that at one time or another we've been out and about and realize...I really have to go to the bathroom.

There's nothing worse than being in an unfamiliar city wandering the streets with a desperate look in your eye, only to be told "The restroom is for patrons only" or "It's out of order", and if you always rely on Starbucks, you've come to realize that so does everyone else, which is why Starbucks also serves as a homeless person washing up station.

While the primary point is to find a working, available restroom, it is certainly a bonus when the restroom is clean and you can breathe while you're in there. It also helps immensely if the essential items are available, such as toilet paper and hand soap.

Well, the days of pee pee misery may be closing to and end for some. If you live in the US of A, program this number into your mobile's address book: 415-350-2290 under the name "MizPee". The next time you're caught in this predicament, send a text message to the number with your city and state and according to the site, "MizPee finds the closest, cleanest toilet and gives you entertaining reading material once you get there."

You read that right kids! You even get reading material. Even better... it's entitled, "The Toilet Paper"

Alternatively, you can use your mobile browser and go to www.mizpee.com. You input your locale and MizPee gives you a list of options.

For each toilet you are given the following information:

Business or building name
Street address
Distance from your location
Average cleanliness rating from previous users
(5 = very clean; 1 = yuck)
Cost and/or purchase requirements, e.g. is this toilet for customers only?
Handicap access: Yes or No
Diaper-changing station: Yes or No
User comments

I don't know if I would read half of those details. I'd want to know how far I had to go to get there, and depending on how dire the situation was, I'd try not to go to anyplace with a "yuck" status.

I don't have an internet browser on my mobile, so I haven't tried this... if you live in Europe, I'd be interested to see if it works so try it out and let me know.

feeling deflated

2009-04-23T17:17:00.002+02:00

Today, I was heading over to some cheap-o shop in town to buy a bike pump (cuz I'm a cheap-o). I unlocked my bike and checked my tires to find that my front tire definitely has a leak, because in 4 days it has gone pretty much flat. I went to the shop anyway and bought the pump, and on my way home I stopped at a bicycle shop to ask how much it would cost to replace both tubes/tires and I was quotes 30 euros! OK, so call me cheap, (and I won't argue) but I spent 60 euros on the bike, so 30 seems like a lot!?

I know the Dutchies are professionals with their bikes, but I am not even close. I barely know how to operate the silly tire valves... and that little doo-hickie electric generator? Well I had the bike for over 2 months before someone showed me how to adjust it and make it work. I've since forgotten, so I don't ride it at night. Anyway, back in NYC I took my oma to the bike shop and it took them 3 hours to get the back tire off when they told me it would take 20 minutes. After watching 3 bike shop employees struggling with the back tire for well over an hour, I am doubtful that I am capable of doing it on my own.

So- what's a girl to do? I guess I pay the 30 euros... boo.

the daily

2009-04-23T12:24:00.002+02:00

exploding dog

concept designs

2009-04-23T03:52:00.004+02:00

Concept designs for a mid to low price range wine being sold at local restaurants in California - emphasizing the 21 to 35 age group who dine and drink casually. This is the first round and they will change significantly in the coming weeks.

label

3 sided table topper

putting one foot in front of the other

2009-04-22T15:16:00.003+02:00

So I've made some small progress in my running habits this month. Previously I was running a 3 mile loop and I was struggling a bit with it. I don't know if it was the route itself, or my lack of enthusiasm, or what. I joined an expat group here in my town and posted in the forums to see if anyone would be interested in running with me in the evenings. I managed to get a handful of positive responses and so we'll be having our inaugural run this evening.

I did also hear from a woman who is a bit of a long distance runner. I think I immediately knew that I could not manage running with her, but she shared her long and short loop routes with me, and both happen to run right past my house. So about 3 weeks ago I decided to give it a shot and ran the short loop, which is 5 miles. I finished it in just over an hour and felt thrilled with myself for doing it, and without really struggling. So I haven't went back to my old route since then, and with tonight's run of just over 5 miles, I'm beginning to feel like this is something that I could really start to enjoy as a hobby.

Where am I going with this? heh. Well I've decided to sign up for a 10k in May. I realize it's not a huge distance but I'm pleased that I'm already to a point where running a 5k would seem like too small a challenge. I have 24 days to run and condition myself and I'm really excited about it.

oh, the responsibility of it all....

2009-04-22T15:05:00.002+02:00

I haven't written in the blog spot for over a week. I have a ton of material saved in my "drafts", but I just haven't felt like posting.

In news, last weekend I finally rode up to Lisse to check out the tulips. It was a nice trip, although I did it with a large group of people and frankly, at times it was a bit chaotic with people stopping without warning to take photos and blocking the bike paths. It made me think of the situation on the Brooklyn Bridge. There's a pedestrian lane and a biking lane, but with so many tourists who don't know or care about that line running up the middle, the bikers end up being really aggressive and tourists are left running around flailing their arms as if they've been swimming and someone yells "shark!" This scene wasn't nearly AS dramatic, but it had some potential. I just rode more towards the front of the group to avoid such cases and eventually most of those people were left to their maps and photos and a smaller, more laid back group managed to cruise the rest of the trip with relative ease, and no photo stops.

We did stop at one point to wait for people at a small castle and were able to check out some sort of Renaissance themed "battle", a random yet fun find, and on our way back, we stopped at the grocery store for some wine and went out to a pretty island park in Warmond to have a few drinks and chat before heading home.

Overall, out of 10, I give the day a 6.

Photos to follow.

kittens

2009-04-16T14:00:00.001+02:00

sometimes kids are cute

hot or not?

2009-04-09T23:24:00.004+02:00

I'm totally down with innovation and I wholly support people who take the incentive to come up with crafty inventions that make life easier, however, I'm not sure if T oastabags are more convenient or if they simply enable people to be even more lazy than they already are (and waste more paper in the process). Functionally speaking, I wonder if a standard toaster slot will even accommodate 2 slices of bread with cheese and tomatoes. That's just my immediate reaction, but I'm curious to know what you think.

They come in "twin packs" and there are 3 different styles; lite, gold, and black which range from $2.90 to $7.30. I have no idea what the difference is, but that seems far from cheap. What do you think? Would you buy Toastabags?

defining moments

2009-04-09T22:39:00.003+02:00

Once I made 3 mix CD's for this guy that I had a crush on. I designed the cover art too. I gave them to him while we were in his car and instead of putting one on, he put them on his back seat and we listened to the radio. I asked him months later if he liked them and he said he never listened to them. I didn't talk to him after that. jerk.

Bruxelles

2009-04-09T13:56:00.005+02:00

inner workings

2009-04-09T13:49:00.002+02:00

colors alive

2009-04-09T13:46:00.002+02:00

Leiden

waiting

2009-04-09T13:44:00.002+02:00

guess where I am...

2009-04-09T13:41:00.001+02:00

no where especially special, but take a guess

museek make-a me happeh

2009-04-09T13:24:00.007+02:00

It's the season of new album releases, so I tried my luck yesterday and was able to get a few newbies, some not-so-newbies, and some oldies but goodies. The goal for the day is to give all or most of these a good listen to whilst I do my work. I'm not very good at writing album reviews, but if anything seems fantastic I'll make mention of it. I'm taking recommendations too, so please let me know if there's something new out that I should be hearing!

Von Bondies - Love, Hate And Then There's You
Casiotone For the Painfully Alone - Vs. Children
Bat for Lashes - Two Suns
Robots In Disguise - We're In the Music Biz
PJ Harvey & John Parish - A Woman A Man Walked By
Fischerspooner - Entertainment
Rupa and the April Fishes - eXtraOrdinary Rendition
Port O' Brien - All We Could Do Was Sing
Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
Unicorns - Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?
Wavves - Wavves
John Maus - Love is Real
Gorky's Zygotic Mynci - Bwyd Time
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - The Doldrums

huh?

2009-04-07T17:46:00.002+02:00

Amsterdam won't separate plastic waste

Tuesday 07 April 2009

Amsterdam city council is refusing to cooperate with government plans to collect plastic waste separately, the Parool reported on Monday afternoon.

Environment minister Jacqueline Cramer wants to introduce separate plastics collection from January 1, 2010. But Amsterdam says it plans to continue incinerating plastic waste because that is better for the environment.

The city council will present a report on the environmental effect of separating plastic waste later this year, the paper says.

In addition, the city council says that experiments in smaller local authority areas show few people are actually prepared to separate their waste.

DutchNews.nl

waiting

2009-04-06T16:36:00.002+02:00

that's a new one...

2009-04-06T16:21:00.003+02:00

the potato delivery man

shhhh....

2009-04-06T16:02:00.003+02:00

kiwi!

2009-04-06T00:04:00.001+02:00

2 thumbs down

2009-04-05T22:48:00.004+02:00

About 3 weeks ago I was having dinner with my roommate and we started talking about animation. I'm not an animation snob, an animation know-it-all, an anime freak-o, none of the above. I like what I like, and I don't really try to take it any further than that. So, I came up with some films that I wanted to show for "Cartoon Week" that would be interesting as a story, visually and artistically interesting, or at least entertaining to an adult audience. So far, it's been pretty solid. We've watched some Family Guy episodes, Wall-e, Persepolis, Les Triplettes de Belleville, and some Animation Show clips. I'm pleased that feedback from the 2 roomies has been 2 thumbs up.

There's still some others in the line up, Tim Burton's short, Vincent, The Flying Pig (hopefully), an episode of Ren & Stimpy, an episode of Wallace & Grommit, Akira, and a few other options.which I've forgotten just now.

Tonight, on a fluke last minute decision, we decided to veer from the film itinerary (which happens when you're dealing with torrents, and slow downloads) and watch a film that we had already downloaded... Monsters vs. Aliens. This film was released in theatres in the US just last week I believe, so the copy wasn't 100%, but, regardless, it could have been perfect and it still would have been terrible. No exaggeration, this is one of the most terrible animation films that I have ever seen. Ever. I watched it to the end out of a sense of responsibility and also because I wanted something magical to happen and for the movie to suddenly change into a masterpiece. That never happened. Now it's over and instead of sending a copy to my parents, I'm deleting it.

'Tis a shame.

sketches of march

2009-04-05T18:24:00.003+02:00

I've been trying to get into the habit of drawing more and thinking in terms of being an artist as well as a graphic designer. The way I see it is that anyone can learn how to use Photoshop or design a web site, but if you can work in multimedia, I think you have more to offer in the the job market.

That's not the only reason that I want to draw more. When I was younger it was all I did and thought about. Somewhere along the line I lost that drive. Like a writer or a musician, art is a form of expression. I'm wondering what I've been doing to relieve myself of the many different emotions and life experiences that I've had over the years since I stopped. Drinking wine is my best guess :)

a hang up

2009-04-05T18:20:00.002+02:00

In my various wanderings across design sites I've noticed this trend, and despite the fact that seeing a dress placed in an image catches me off guard a bit, it does have some sort of quality that is visually interesting. Some of these images remind me of clothing catalogues, and so to see them in interior design magazines seems a bit odd. Retailers like Anthropologie sell clothing, furniture, and home goods and their catalogues and feature very similar ideals. Interior styling has gone into some exciting directions though, and I can appreciate how the period the dress is from, the color, the fabric, all of the little details help to enhance the environment that has been set before you, and in some cases they add a certain richness that might otherwise be missing. Styling is really not unlike traditional art, where the space that you work in is your canvas, and you rely on color and texture to set the tone, which is similar to any other art form if you think about it.

circa 1980-ish

2009-04-05T17:58:00.005+02:00

When I was little, my mother and I lived for a brief time on a small farm in New Jersey. My memories of this period are just flashes. We had geese, which were used to make down filled comforters and pillows. There were owls living in the barn. I had 3 cats, a big grey one, an orange tabby and a grey tabby. Our house didn't have heat, and we had to burn wood in a stove when it was cold. I remember that my mom had a lot of antique furniture and she used to sew on an old Singer sewing table. There were plants everywhere, and I remember specifically that there were ferns and spider plants hanging in the windows. We had this really old claw foot bathtub that she painted black and I used to love taking bubble baths in it.

I have no idea how long we lived there, but I like to remember that time in my life.

whew!

2009-04-04T20:47:00.008+02:00

I think this has been the most complicated tutorial that I've done in terms of the amount of steps and work involved in each separate component of the design. It wasn't as frustrating as the castle tutorial. Maybe that's because I've been working in Photoshop over the past several weeks in school... although, I did have to use my "call a friend" option for this one as well. I'm okay with that though because that's what friends are for! After that brief stumbling block (somewhere around step 14) I cruised through the rest of the lesson with relative ease.

The best learning part of this tutorial- adjustment layers and layer masks. Usually if I were making changes to a layer, I would just click on image>adjustment>and choose whatever adjustment I want, but with an adjustment layer, I can create a new layer above the original and make the changes, and because the adjustment layer is also a mask, I can then go in with a black paint brush and remove areas of the new effect that I don't want, showing the layer below though selectively. If I don't want the adjustment layer anymore down the line, I just delete it, and I'm not compromising anything in my work.

The most challenging parts- using the clone stamp and spot healing tools to expand the sky and the brush tool to create the swirl between the woman and the bird. I am not very competent with any of those, so getting used to the way that they work was quite a task. I think I spent the most of my time on those 2 areas of this entire project.

I chose to change some of the details based on my own aesthetic preferences and I'm pleased with the final result for sure. There were quite a few images used to create this scene, and below are a few of them, followed by the finished result.

Overall I think this is a fabulous tutorial for people who are comfortable with the basic skills required to use PS because you already understand layers and masks. The repetition involved here really helps to drive home the value of what you're doing so that you will be able to actually go ahead and use them in your own projects. You can find this tutorial along with the required images at psd tuts and the creator of the tutorial is a freelance graphic designer named Constantin Potorac. You can visit his personal site here.

sky

foreground

waterfall

finished example

my version

You can click on the bottom two images to see them in greater detail

koyaansiqatsi

2009-04-04T17:00:00.003+02:00

koyaansiqatsi is one of those films that you can watch over and over and each time find yourself lost deep in thought and contemplation over its meaning. The fact is that it does have one, but it is as fluid and open to interpretation as a poem. I can't possibly impress my own ideas of the film upon you, however, I think you should watch it and if it is interesting to you and leaves you wanting to discuss your feelings, then I think you should watch it again at some point, because you will most likely see it differently, and understand details that you missed the first time. Additionally, if you read about the film after seeing it, you begin to understand the significance of the locations and the reason that they appear in the film. koyaanisqatsi took 3 years to shoot and 3 years to collaborate the film shots with Phillip Glass, the composer. It is truly a masterpiece in every way.

tied

2009-04-04T16:43:00.002+02:00

I don't know too much about this performance but it's just so pretty to watch. It was choreographed by Cleo Mack for the DanceNOW NYC festival.

don't we all...

2009-04-04T16:23:00.004+02:00

I was looking for a funny picture for my friend and I found this. I immediately loved it and wanted to see where it came from, and more importantly, where can I find more. Unfortunately, the blog hasn't been used since 2007 and there are no other drawings.

Let this one live on... I'm glad to have found it.

hello NYT, who does your marketing?

2009-04-04T01:11:00.001+02:00

I remember when I first read the New York Times online. I thought to myself that it was far more convenient to view the news during my breaks at school than it was for me to go out of my way to buy a paper and then find a good place to read it. I enjoyed sharing interesting stories with friends and family as well.. something that I probably wouldn't have done before.

Stating the obvious, environmentally speaking, reading the news online makes a lot more sense.

From a financial viewpoint, I'd like to think that there are just as many people, if not more, reading a given paper day to day over the internet. What then, has prohibited these companies from coming up with a way to profit from their online news source? I find it rather odd that if I choose to read the NYT in print, that I have to pay for it, and if I read from the internet, most of it is free. Doesn't it stand to reason that you would create some sort of online subscription?

I suppose some obstacles that newspapers would face in charging people to read their materials, is that there are so many news sources out there writing about the same thing. I subscribe to several news feeds, and it amazes me how each one reports pretty much the same exact story and headline when it comes to the bigger topics. If NYT charged, and Reuters didn't, well then I guess you'd just go find your news there?

At the end of the day, I'm wondering how these huge media moguls will continue to provide us with news coverage if subscriptions just continue to dwindle.

droomhuis

2009-04-04T01:05:00.003+02:00

I have no idea if that Dutch is correct or not, but I'm a foreigner, and I'm allowed to say things that don't make sense.

Here's the story: When I first visited Delft I thought it was just as pretty as the famously picturesque city of Bruges. I thought (at the time) that living there would be amazing, because everyday you'd be surrounded by beauty, which I reasoned would surely enhance your life somehow. Soon after, I discovered the fun of funda, and I spent a lot of time checking out real estate trends in different cities (I still do it, but I make no apologies for this seemingly wasteful behavior. Let's just call it a "hobby").

Lately I've been more in the mindset that living in a city with diversity and a bit of bustle and energy is more my thing, but I still love this house.

a bad idea that seemed good at some point

2009-04-04T00:45:00.000+02:00

Baked cookies tonight and ate a bit too much of the mix. It's one of those things that you know is a bad idea but you do it anyway, and despite the fact that you feel gross afterward, you'll do it again at some point in your life. (I say "you" but really I think we all know that I mean me.)

viewmaster

2009-03-28T00:44:00.003+01:00

I think the world is small sometimes. Before I made the grueling decision to leave Brussels I was looking for a room in the city center. I ended up inquiring with a woman but not taking it obviously. Anyway, we kept in touch a bit and I ended up hearing about a performance that she'd created last year, called "viewmaster." The concept is interesting because it's based off of an old style optical illusion called "pepper's ghost" where lighting effects create multiple reflections in a glass viewing window (one person is actually there and the others are out of sight of the audience.) This is a clip of the performance.

the weather is getting to me

2009-03-26T13:49:00.001+01:00

exploding dog

reflections of modern society

2009-03-24T18:25:00.003+01:00

get someecards

bad bad bad

2009-03-22T14:30:00.003+01:00

Here is a fabulous example of amazing furniture laid out for an interview. I would *hate* to sit here and try to feel comfortable in a social setting, not to mention how weird it would be to enjoy the sofa on its own with 2 empty seats staring at you.

I want to sit on you

2009-03-18T13:14:00.002+01:00

I don't like anything about this decor, but that sofa is pretty hot.

it's about questioning yourself

2009-03-18T12:59:00.006+01:00

When I started this blog, it was just my 4th attempt, and moving from Belgium back to NYC to embark upon a new and exciting life seemed like a good time. Up until December of 2008, my posts were just as random as my ideas. Now that I'm making an effort to post more, I have to question with frequency, should the topics be more consistent? I go through phases when it comes to the sorts if ideals that I want to share, and they range from personal, to political, to DIY, to art... the result is that there's nothing streamlined about this blog. Sometimes I question the direction that I've taken by posting something out of sync (creepy pope, for example) and I wonder how that reads to people who look at this. I'm then left questioning if I shouldn't think about my audience and focus my posts on one idea or topic, or should I just post a mess of different topics? I could say, well this blog is for me so who cares. On the other hand, if it was just for me then I could write and save files on my hard drive rather than putting them up on the Internet. So is this blog for me or for you and if it's for you, what do you want? (I write this as if I'm famous even though I rarely ever break 20 views per day)

the pope is creepy looking

2009-03-17T13:38:00.006+01:00

In a country where sex ed is not compulsory and many aren't even able to get a proper education, where rape and abuse of young women is all too common, and the plight of these victims with a condition known as a "fistula" is still swept under the rug.. and where the epidemic of the AIDS virus that is wreaking havoc on Africa's people... I find it difficult to understand how the Pope can say that distribution of condoms is not the answer, or even a contributing factor that could help improve the situation.

Instead he predictably calls for abstinence.

Life would be a lot easier if with the virtuous belief in god that one may be able to abstain from rape, incest, murder, and whatever terribly disgusting behavior people have been known to engage in, however, just last week I read an article how the number of cases being brought against the church for molesting children has skyrocketed.

How can the Pope sit there and preach that religion is the answer in Africa, when the people who stand inside the church that represent him and the entire belief system of Christianity are guilty of such abominable behavior themselves? This self righteous ideal that spreading the word of god will cure the world despite seeing before your eyes that life is a lot more complicated than that saddens me... with archaic ideals like this preventing even the notion of responsible sexual behavior, I believe people will continue to suffer and their situation will not change. People aren't going to stop procreating, however, if they are offered the education and resources to prevent unwanted pregnancy and disease, something valuable is offered and this knowledge can be passed on to the younger generation. Abstinence is black and white and life is not but education and self value is essential.

real simple

2009-03-16T18:27:00.004+01:00

Both of these images are from different spaces, however, I like the way they relate to each other. They bring me to think about traditional clay building techniques, where construction is entirely from the earth so that the shelves are part of the home, the seating is part of the home, everything is built as one. Here, obviously in a contemporary fashion, these ideas are put into place. I love the giant concrete slab floors that seamlessly become the walls and the table. There's some sort of romantic quality to them... for some reason they make me want to visit the Greek Isles.

yes, please

2009-03-16T18:22:00.003+01:00

Being a huge fan of sunlight, this shower looks more than inviting. I bet it's gorgeous at night too!

creatures of Rotterdam

2009-03-16T02:25:00.001+01:00

just curious

2009-03-12T20:17:00.002+01:00

Where is the best place to host images online? I have some reservations of course: 1. finding out that all of my images are available to these crazy people stalking websites that I posted about a few days ago 2. people downloading my images

I like the way Flickr seems to offer some privacy options. I've found a lot of images on Flickr that won't allow me to right click and "save as"... which is what I want. I know that won't stop someone from taking a screen shot and getting it, but if you're willing to do all that to get my pictures, then you deserve them.

So I opened a Flickr account, trying to be as covert as possible now that I'm officially paranoid about everything that I do online. I'm not sure that I want to move forward and upload any more. I don't mind if strangers can see my photos, I just don't want public searches for me linking to them, and I don't want people taking them.

Any thoughts? Is Flickr the best option?

"to pine" is to yearn deeply and suffer with longing

2009-03-10T15:19:00.006+01:00

This pretty little lady was built almost 100 years ago! She's 110 square meters, including 3 bedrooms, 2 balconies, and 3 fireplaces with hookups for wood stoves. With a tram stop at the front door, she's also biking distance to Amsterdam, and is just north of Rembrandt Park. At 249,000 (400/mo.) what I would do to live here and fix this place up. *sigh*

good dreams

2009-03-10T14:35:00.009+01:00

Can you learn a lot about a person by how they decorate their home? I've created my ideal space here...

good to know

2009-03-10T03:29:00.007+01:00

Last night, I found out about a website called "Delver" (and a handful of others that I'll go over as well) which seeks to "take social networking to a new level" by changing the way your search results are gathered.

What does this mean to you? Well, let me explain:

A typical search engine crawls the Web by following links to URLs found in other pages. By contrast, theses sites are using the "Deep Web", which is made up of pages that no other pages link to. Dynamic pages are a good example. When someone searches for you by name, email address, or telephone number, a host in relevant information will turn up.

I typed in my own name and found photos from my public MySpace page, a link to my MySpace page, my friends, my videos, my Picassa images, and even my Stumble account bookmarks. Even worse, the site features non-current data which appeared on my profile over a year ago, including photos which have been deleted long ago.

You don't need an account to view the information, however, the site lures you in by allowing you to sign up to "claim" your account (so again, giving even more information). This allows you to decide how you want that information to appear to others, but the catch here is that there is no way for you to opt to make this profile private so I'm not really sure why it's worth it take ownership over the "profile" so that you can add to it but not have complete control over it. (check out this article on Delver at Tech Crunch for a clearer explanation on how this works.)

A Laptopmag review says, "When we first used Delver, we felt a bit creeped out: you can’t use the search engine without first creating a profile. When we typed in our real name, Delver, by default, used our LinkedIn profile to gather basic information on us (such as previous jobs and geographic location). You can also add your profiles from a variety of other popular sites, including Blogger, Facebook, Flickr, and MySpace, among others. For privacy’s sake, you can change your display name to an alias".

Prepare for this: it doesn't end with Delver (I was silly to think that it would)

Wink "provides search results on people from social networks like MySpace, LinkedIn and Bebo. Users search based on name, geography and other criteria (company, school, whatever) and see results from major social networks."

Spock beta indexes the entire web to search for people-related data. "Spock will generate a lot of controversy because individuals are not in complete control of their profile. The community decides on descriptive tags for a person." "Litigation is sure to follow from celebrity types not happy with their Spock profile, but Singh said flat out tonight that the site will firmly fight any attempts to defy the community’s decisions on
descriptive tags."

And then there's pipl. Tech Crunch posted this article, aptly titled, "Pipl.com: People Search Engine So Good, It Will Scare Your Pants Off" "It produces not only links to all of your profiles on social networks like Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn, blog mentions, and photos on Flickr. It finds mentions of your name in public records, including property records, SEC filings, and birth databases. It also finds e-mail addresses and summarizes “quick facts” about the person." (UH... NOT COOL WITH THIS)

Give it a try. See what shows up. How do you feel about it? I felt violated only to realize that every time I open an account online, by agreeing to the terms of service, I'm saying that it's okay for the public to see my information. I hadn't thought that someone would develop websites like these to corral ALL of those pages and put them in one place for someone to view. What this means to me, is that if I'm looking for a job, a potential employer could not only look for me on Linkedin for my professional information, but they can see things that I don't think should be part of the job screening process. If you enjoy watching Youtube videos or if you have a Flickr account, those will show up too. So, be aware that if you post images of you drinking with your friends or posing in a sexy photo on vacation, your potential employer can see it. It also means that a routine email to a stranger/associate/family member suddenly opens up your entire life to them, should they choose to visit these sites.

The thing is that we knew all of this when you opened your online accounts! They're public! So, there's not really anything that we can do about it... except maybe making sure that they are all set to private, and that you use different email accounts and aliases when opening new ones in the future.

sleeper

2009-03-09T02:42:00.005+01:00

I'm going to be 32 in May, and I'm beginning to seriously question my abilities to organize myself effectively so that my workload is more spread out, rather than in 10 hour blocks of time. It's a crazy habit that I developed when I was younger. I'd begin a drawing and I just wouldn't stop for hours. Finally I'd sit up and realize that I'd been in another world, and that my shoulder was locked in position because I'd been leaning on it for the entire time.

I guess I've always thought that sort of behavior was just innate.

Right now, I am totally exhausted. The past 2 weeks have been slightly hellish in a good way, but the kind of way that makes you feel like stopping and doing absolutely nothing is not an option, but it's something you want to do so badly.

It's 3 am, and arguably, I could stay awake for at least another 3 hours to get this assignment done, but I can't think anymore, my eyes hurt, my back is sore, and I want my pajamas and my bed.

nite nite

take on me?

2009-03-06T23:20:00.000+01:00

Take on Me: Literal Video Version - watch more funny videos

it all starts here folks

2009-03-05T23:45:00.002+01:00

no joke

2009-03-05T22:53:00.011+01:00

"We had to remove an image (or images) from your account because they violated our Terms of Use. Our site is for people as young as 13, so we can't have certain kinds of pics (nude/sexually explicit, violence). If you continue to violate our Terms, we may be forced to remove your account.

If you find an image which you feel is in violation of our Terms, please feel free to use the 'report image' link below the image.

Thanks for your understanding.

MySpace Safety & Security"

my work

...uh, no MySpace, I don't understand,not when my images were in a "friends only" album, and this is a girl's public profile image

here

the answer is: to be

2009-03-03T20:33:00.011+01:00

Naked. You may have read my original post about sauna culture where I mentioned that I would eventually be going with a friend of mine. Well yesterday was the day, and during the week leading up to the event I definitely felt some degree of anxiety, although the fact that my friend and I had planned on making our trip on "ladies day" kept it to a minimum.

From start to finish, our day was relaxing. We took our time and walked from Amsterdam station through the center of the city and then through Vondelpark. We had more than agreeable weather, flowers were sprouting, and I was able to take in the architecture overload that is Amsterdam... good stuff. At the end of the park is Sauna Fenomeen.. a little hippy-esque type place which you may not even notice if not for the herbal smells wafting to the street (oh and the crazy painted walls.)

When we entered, the first thing I noticed was the smell of eucalyptus and the sounds of Buddha Bar. We checked in and went to the locker area, stripped down, and headed for the shower. I had to leave my towel at the entrance, and I was uncomfortably aware of my bare behind facing the common area.. but I got over it quickly. Over the next couple of hours, we did a circuit of 1. sauna, 2. outside in the garden to cool off, 3. shower/rinse, and repeat. We did that 3 times before lunch. The final step was the Turkish sauna, which is a super steamy room (and the source of the eucalyptus) where you immediately sweat like crazy and your nose opens up from the medicinal smells. I think I could have hung out in the steam room all day, it felt so comforting and invigorating at the same time. This winter, with all of the dry heat indoors, my skin has been so dry, but afterwards my skin was noticeably silky and moisturized...

Overall, the experience felt wonderful and I want to go more often. It was extremely relaxing, I was doing something nice for my body, and although I had my towel on for the most part I feel like I conquered a fear, and that's always a good thing.

I'm definitely not interested in going to visit the sauna when there are both men and women together. There was something special about the all female environment. There was a grandma with her daughter and her grand daughter... Turkish ladies covering themselves with mud, women relaxing in silence or chatting away with friends sipping mint tea.

I give the day 5 stars. I got loads of exercise while walking, girly energy, yummy Indian snacks, architecture craziness, even more love for Amsterdam, flowers, and public nudity, oh, and I got home and passed out cold by 10:30 and didn't wake up until this morning. yaaay!

Wilbur

2009-03-03T20:26:00.006+01:00

Supermarket

2009-03-01T12:44:00.011+01:00

I found this website called Supermarket. I want to say straight away, that there is a lot of crazy cool stuff to be found here. My impression here is that this is a step up from Etsy, where the offerings are from start up companies, and the products range from home decor, accessories, jewelry, and apparel. Supermarket is the debut project by Brooklyn based development company Supercorp.

Here are a few things that I think you should buy (if you're a girl.. or you like to dress like one):

The Market Bag - Moop

Neck Lush

grey wool hat by Claudia Shulz

Aside from that, check out my favorite shop, by a company called Little Houses. I'm a sucker for these styles with their high over sized neck lines and the little extras that make them stand out, such as off center buttons, feminine detailing, and unique cut.

Interested in Supermarket? Check out Superblog

thought of the day

2009-03-01T12:27:00.007+01:00

Did you ever notice how when you wake up early and go to the library in town to have peace and quiet to do some reading for school and homework, that a family with a loud child who climbs all over the floor and furniture decides that despite the fact that there are 8 other free tables, the one directly next to you looks the most appealing?

c'est ma vie

thought of the day

2009-02-28T17:32:00.004+01:00

Have you ever noticed how if you're eating with someone else while chatting away, that you rarely notice anything annoying? Have you ever noticed how if you are not eating, and someone else in the room is, that it is suddenly apparent to you that the way that they chew is gross, or that they feel the need to hit their teeth with their fork every single time they take a bite which ends up sounding like nails on a chalk board?

Just a thought...

a story about a garbage man

2009-02-27T15:00:00.008+01:00

Gilles Eichenbaum, a Paris based artist, collects old out of date kitchen items, such as these, and gives them a new lease on life by repurposing them into lamps. I think it's an awesome idea, and definitely for those into the who "kitch" movement that is in full effect right now. To me, this is a terrific example of someone seeing something, seemingly of little or no value, and turning it into something beautiful. Brings a tear to my eye.. sniff*

These items can be purchased at craft2eu, and they range from 150 to 450 euros. Craft2eu is worth a look as well. It's a German site that showcases and promotes the work of talented artists (which is also available for purchase via their catalog) Check it out, see what people are doing, look for inspiration, gallery shows, and maybe for something new for your home.

Check out Gilles here to see more about him, his work, and where he's showing

l'affiche moderne

2009-02-27T15:00:00.007+01:00

In my wanderings I stumbled upon this cute little place called L'Affiche Moderne where one can find a diverse showcasing of graphic design and photography which are available to purchase as posters. Each image shown is sold in limited edition runs of 300, which are numbered. The nice thing is that you can order them in 2 sizes, and the prices are very reasonable, from 30 to 60 euros. Again, having unique art on your walls isn't always so easy to do, but it's always nice when you can make it possible, and without dipping into your savings account.

Julien Pacaud (online portfolio)

Perdita Corleone (Le Blog de...)

that'snot art!

2009-02-27T14:20:00.006+01:00

Marcel Wanders, a Dutch design guru of sorts has come up with a surprising inspiration for a line of vases. Aptly titled "the airborne snotty vase"... this design is created by digitally capturing the spray pattern of molecules that fly out of your mouth and nose when you sneeze. After the shape is captured and enlarged by 1000x, a mesh rendering is scanned into a computer (SLS machine), which produces a replica - with an end use of a glass receptacle for flowers! (aka "vase")

Digital laser cutting has become increasingly popular and this concept takes it further, by beginning with a biological expulsion, using extremely high tech methods for capturing it and producing it, but the end result returns to its misshapen, biological form... which sort of betrays the techie methods which were used in its realization.

Antwerpen 2

2009-02-26T02:16:00.006+01:00

Di got me started on how beautiful the sun is against her city in the late afternoon. She's a smart bunny, she is.

Leiden

2009-02-25T20:18:00.004+01:00

Antwerpen

2009-02-25T18:33:00.002+01:00

Brussels

2009-02-25T18:31:00.005+01:00

Place St. Catherine

Strasbourg

2009-02-25T18:28:00.004+01:00

ingenious

2009-02-25T16:52:00.006+01:00

I've heard recently that in the US, they're going to stop making pennies, because the coin is actually more expensive than what it's worth. Go America!

My experiences in Belgium and the Netherlands are that a lot of cashiers don't want to take your 1 cent coins, and sometimes, they don't even want the 5 cents either. I've been left somewhat confused by that, since it is actually considered to be a part of the monetary system here... but what do I know?

So look, if you live in the US, or in Europe, or if you just happen to have a huge mass of mixed out of circulation coins (make sure they're not valuable!), this is a fantastic way to use them - and - you don't have to pay for tiles... so you also save some money for more important things. Like wine for example.

See how smart I am?

random image find

2009-02-25T16:45:00.003+01:00

I was looking online for a "silhouette" of a woman for a project I'm working on, and I found this, which is perhaps not going to work for my assignment... but hey, she's pinching her boobie...

so says BBC....

2009-02-25T00:17:00.002+01:00

These are actually laws.....

It is legal for a male to urinate in public, as long it is on the rear wheel of his motor vehicle and his right hand is on the vehicle (and your left hand is on....)

A bed may not be hung out of a window

Taxi drivers are required to ask all passengers if they have smallpox or the plague (I get this all the time from cabbies)

Any person found breaking a boiled egg at the sharp end will be sentenced to 24 hours in the village stocks (enacted by Edward VI)

Any boy under the age of 10 may not see a naked mannequin (but a priest is OK?)

Throughout the whole of England it is illegal to eat mince pies on the 25th of December

It is illegal to be drunk on licensed premises (and what is a pub good for then?)

Here is proof

Bueller.... Bueller....

2009-02-25T00:05:00.003+01:00

Took this at the grocery store in Clinton Hill, NY back in 2005. When I moved back there in 2007, it was still there. Apparently, it wasn't an accident.

So, question of the day:
Just what is KNORK?