My wish to you and yours!

Hi guys and gals......

It has been a while, I know, so I thought it was time to fill you in on some developments.

I am doing fine healthwise (thanks for asking). I visited my doctor again last week and I am off the meds now, but I still have to pay attention to what I eat and drink. I can have tea and coffee again (only 2 or 3 cups a day) and that cheered me up a lot. But I still have to be careful with spices, fat, alcohol and focus on portion sizes. If all goes well, I can go on with my life, but if the symptoms return, I'll have to go back and probably see a specialist :-( I am not looking forward to something like an esophagogastroduodenoscopy…….brrrrr!

I went to a Flickr Meetup the other day, which was fun. I had a hard time deciding whether or not I should go (poor weather conditions and health) but in the end I went and had fun. I was nice meeting some new people although some of them are photography nutters or as someone else called them; people with a passion!

I had a really fun birthday yesterday (thanks for all the birthday wishes). I got some nice flowers, cards, theatre tickets, a voucher to buy concert tickets, money to put in my camera fund, a dinner invitation, candles, chocolates, perfume and a nice bottle of wine.

Of course I did some other things too, and the regular life stuff happened but I am not going to blog about it……..in fact, I have reached a decision; after 2 years and 3 month and 670 posts, I am going to quit this whole blogging thing. As some of you know, I’ve been thinking about this a lot for quite some time now and I think it’s the best thing for now.
When I started blogging it was al about using and practising my English, later on I just wanted to make people a little happier and smile a bit more. I hope I’ve managed to do that from time to time. Right now I feel I can’t do that anymore, I lack inspiration and the drive that is needed.


I suspect I'll come back to blogging one day. Maybe I’ll pick up where I left off or maybe I’ll start something new. Right now, “Everything is open,
Nothing is set in stone”

So, I am off, drifting around like driftwood for a while :-)

Take care of yourself, smile a lot, laugh often, think happy thoughts, dream as if you’ll live forever and live as if you’ll die today.

Hugs to you all, and thanks for visiting my blog.
This is Dakota signing off,…… na-nu, nanu!

Comic Tuesday: It's like counting the rings on a tree.

Comic Tuesday: Trying something new!

Look what I found (#10)

Here is one I prepared earlier. Enjoy!

Sometimes you come across the weirdest stuff, like Pepsi-Ice-Cucumber for instance. You might not have seen it in your local supermarket, but it was introduced in Japan last June. I wonder what it tastes like, but since it is only sold in Japan, I guess I’ll never know. Apparently the Japanese have a thing for weird and wonderful drinks, check out this list.

If you have kids or like to fool around with paper and build stuff, this might be a site you enjoy: Readymech. Here you find box-like colourful robots that are on there in PDF format. All you have to do is print them out, cut and fold on the dotted lines. You can either use glue or tape to stick them together. If you stick the paper on a piece of cardboard before you cut and fold them, you could also create nice funny gift boxes.

For those of you who like to multitask. You can give praise and do a workout at the same time because this is gospel dance aerobics and it is full of fun and energy with moves that anyone can do!



If you are in need of a bit of Zen time, watch this short computer graphic movie called Falling Water featuring the Frank Lloyd Wright masterpiece. You can find more information about the house here and here


Always looking for new not so mainstream music? Take a look at Mashable. Mashable has created a music news toolbox which consists of 50+ links for discovering new music.

And finally: Don’t make fun of death…….that’s not funny!
Warning: probably not for everybody

Encounter with the paracetamol pusher.

First of all, I know I've already mentioned it in the comment section yesterday, but for those of you who've missed it, thanks for all the well wishes everyone! I am not jumping around yet, but I do feel a lot better (and I hate staying in bed) so, here is a little update.

Yesterday I went to see my doctor and that’s always a lot of fun (or a waste of time, whatever you like to call it), because most of the time you already know what he's going to say and what he's going to give you……that magical drug called paracetamol and it almost always comes with this advice: 3 times a day, for 7 days, and if that doesn’t make things better, make another appointment. So, let’s say you have done that and there is no improvement, on the 8th day you call his assistant to make a new appointment, which is always a pain in itself. She will reluctantly grant you a new appointment for the following week and tells you to keep taking the paracetamol (miraculously they always give you enough for 2 weeks). It’s almost as if they are thinking 'Hey, if it didn’t kill you the first week, it’s not going to do so in the second.' BTW, I always believe that the whole paracetamol run is some sort of test to see if you are seriously sick. But that’s how it usually goes. Yesterday was a bit of a different story.

I was lucky to get an appointment so soon, but that was probably because I’d thrown in a bit of chest pain. Nervously I awaited my turn. Not really sure why though, because I already had a vague idea what I had….a virus and heartburn and I actually did want him to give me something for the latter because the over-the-counter stuff wasn't working. I already knew you had to see a doc for the really good (or should that be bad) stuff.
Last June I had a bad case of heartburn too, at the time I actually thought I was going to die and that thought brought on a panic attack and I ended up in the emergency doctor’s office. Not nice, but quite an experience. Last week I had a milder episode, but last Monday it was back in full swing, pain in the breastbone area included, and the worst part….it wasn’t going away. Add to this all flu-like symptoms and there you have it ladies and gentleman….. a fine mess!

But back to the doctor’s office. Of course he wanted to send me away with just the paracetamol but I told him I was going nowhere until he gave me something else for the acids too, because it was haunting me like a terrible nightmare (or the bad Chinese food I had last Sunday). And strangely enough, it was almost as if someone flicked a switch, I had his full attention all of a sudden. OMG….how scary!
He asked me to tell him the full story and so I did. When I finished, he looked at his computer, typed a few things and stared at the screen for a very long time. All I could think was ‘is he writing me a prescription or is he just googling my symptoms?’ Because come on…..you never know these days! But, he actually was printing out some nice (not!) instructions and a diet list because he thinks I have some form of GERD. Oh jolly!

So here are some of the things I am not allowed to have over the next two weeks: coffee, tea, (oh, no coffee and tea….how on earth am I going to survive that…the horror!)
milk, alcohol, orange juice, sodas. There’s only one thing I can drink safely and that is……water! I can’t have chocolate, ice cream, salad dressings, cheese, anything with tomato (so no soup, pasta sauce, or pizza for instance), mint (he even suggested a mint free toothpaste), onions, garlic, pepper, (hot)spices, cabbage and cauliflower, milk, vinegar, fat.
Actually the list goes on and on, but I am not going to bore you with that. If I want to be safe, it’s best to stick to water and bread. Oh and let's not forget, I am allowed to swallow my prescribed drugs. Hooray!
Nah, it's not all doom and gloom, there are still a few things I can eat and drink; I just have to figure out which ones. And it’s not a life sentence (at least not yet) it’s just two weeks (I have to see him again).

Wish me luck, because I think I am going to need it.

Service announcement.

I've been feeling a bit off-colour for a few days, varying from being just fine when I sat around, to crap if I did anything at all. I had no further symptoms until last night. So, I guess it’s official…..I am sick and off to bed! See you in a couple of days. Have fun everyone!

Words of Wisdom

Things you can do with Lego

Very nice, but is it art? Then again, what is art anyway? What is the definition of art? At what point does something go from being created to being art? Does art become art when its creator calls it art, or when someone else calls it art? Hmmz…. way too many question this early in the day ;-)

Comic Tuesday: Comfort over fashion

Look what I found (#9)

Aaahh Freak out!
Freaking news has an interesting Photoshop contest. In this contest people are asked to perform partial face transplants on politicians and celebrities. The right half of a face has to be from one celebrity and the left half from another. The results are very weird and wonderful at the same time.

Slippery when wet
Maybe not as weird and wonderful, but somehow still interesting, is this next site called Damp Cats. Damp Cats is the ultimate collection of wet, soggy, un-dry and generally damp cats on the web.
Want to see more wet pets? Wet dogs and wet pets just might your thing.

Ice is slippery too!
So, why not continue with the animal fun. This time it comes in the form of a game: Pingus. Pingus is a free Lemmings-like game. Don't know good ol'Lemmings? Well, Lemmings is puzzle game in which the player takes command of a bunch of small animals and has to guide them around levels. The animals walk on their own and the player can only influence them by giving them commands, like build a bridge, dig a hole or redirect all animals in the other direction. The goal of each level is to reach the exit.
Pingus is very similar but does have some nice new features like a world map and secret levels.
The game is free, but of course if you think the it is worth some money you can donate via Paypal.

Oh, and since we are on the subject of retro games, do you remember that simple (uhum) puzzle game called BoxWorld? If you don't know it, or have never played it, you can download it here


For those of you who can never get enough of watching animals….even more animal fun….Mirror, mirror on the wall!

Okay, enough of that, let’s move on to some serious business, or business cards in this case. Some of them are just horrible, or way too old fashioned, but others are just brilliant. Check out this amazing collection.

That’s all folks!

Why do they strike that pose?

Last weekend I visited, like I mentioned earlier, an itsy, bitsy, tiny, small, local festival and some fun was had, but for the most part it was just another failed attempt. Not on my part though, I tried to have fun, but the ambience wasn’t festival-like and the line-up wasn’t either. Such a shame, after 15 years it’s not getting better, it is actually getting worse! You’d think they might have got the hang of it by now…..but no! And again the organisation is raving about their success, according to them everyone had a brilliant time……guess they haven’t read the inquiry forms yet. But, enough of that, because I was going to write about something completely different.

While I was visiting some of the concerts, I did notice something and that’s what this silly entry (for lack of anything better) is about. So, come on, what did you see, I can almost hear you say. Well, I did notice the large quantity of folded arms and bored faces. Now, you could think that it was to be expected because of the line-up and lack of ambience, but I’ve seen this pose all over the country (wow, for once Holland sounds big!) whilst visiting all sorts of events.
Men, especially single men (or solo-goers), seem to favour this pose. Now my question is, why? It is almost as if they are saying leave me alone, stay away from me, maybe they are feeling insecure, or maybe they just don’t want to express any joy. Or could it be that they wished they stayed home and watched boring telly like they always do? Whatever the reason might be, I, for one, don’t think it’s really helping the festivities. But it also made me wonder, is this some sort of typical male behaviour or is it just typical Dutch male behaviour? Answers on a postcard please……or just use the comment section :-)

Oh, and here is one little tip: never ever ask a folded arms/bored face–guy a simple question, like: wasn’t it supposed to begin at 10? Because, they either bite your head off or think you are coming on to them…….Yeah, as if!

Ehmm......................(again!)

Because what else can I say.......

From Holland with love ;-)

Comic Tuesday: Ehmm...................

Mind, Body & Soul Session (#43)

Today is a glorious day! Funny, you would almost think it was summer ;-) So, no long post this Sunday, I have better things to do….like visiting a little local festival :-) Anyway, here is my short MBSS-tip for today.

When in doubt, ASK!
It can happen to the best of us. Someone says something to you; you digest it, get on with the conversation, but later on the spoken words pop back into your head and get stuck there. No matter how hard you try, you can’t seem to get rid of them. Why? Because you are not exactly sure that you fully understood the thing that was said, or because you feel there might have been an alternative meaning or an alternative motive to the words spoken, or maybe something was said jokingly but now you are wondering if the person was being serious. Whatever the case might be, stop thinking about it right now! Filling your head up with alternative scenarios or fictitious insinuations isn’t going to help you, it will only make thing worse. Ignoring the problem, or forgetting it was ever said, isn’t going to fix things either. Staying silent solves nothing.

Instead, visit, call, text or e-mail the other person and ask them what they really meant, if you understood them correctly, or if there was a hidden agenda, an alternative motive. Whatever you ask, start talking and talk, talk, talk until you are both clear about the subject at hand. Whenever you have doubts about something, ASK!

Forget about keeping your mouth shut, when in doubt, communicate!

Look what I found (#8)

I Used to Believe – The Childhood beliefs site.
I Used To Believe is a fun site! It holds a weird and wonderful compilation of ideas that adults thought were true when they were children. One example “my dad used to tell me that if you pointed at things, you were poking holes in the air and the fairies/birds would trip over them. I’m still hesitant to poke holes..”
And here is one thing I used to believe: Milk came from ‘normal’ black and/or white cows; chocolate milk was produced by brown cows :-)

Bizarre experiments.
I came across a list of the 20 most bizarre experiments of all time on the museumofhoaxes.com. In my opinion, bizarre is a bit of an understatement, some of them are really atrocious but hey, that’s just my opinion. Oh, and in case you are wondering: Why are these experiments listed on the Museum of Hoaxes? They're not hoaxes, are they? Here is the sites answer: “No, they're not. All of these experiments really did occur. I put the list here simply because I already had this site up and running, and I didn't feel like designing a new site just for one list.”
Make of it what you will.

Talking about weird, bizarre or whatever you want to call it, have you seen this video? It’s really unbelievable!
The guy doing this is Jean-Yves Blondeau, also known as Rollerman.

Intruder protection system.
Wouldn’t it be useful if you could turn your bedside table into an intruder protection system. The makers of the "Safe Bedside Table" must have thought so. One minute your bedside table is what it is, a bedside table and the next it becomes a home intruder protection system. All it takes are two quick steps :-) Ideal for scaring away burglars, ghosts, obtrusive husbands, rats and mice, and gnomes. Oh my, did I just say gnomes, as in leprechauns? Yes I did, because they are out there!

They simply must be, because what other explanation is there for this odd ball behaviour:

That’s all folks!

Three Beautiful Things.

Last week AOJ shared three beautiful things on her blog and she asked everyone to join in, so here are my beautiful things:

People with a passion
I love people, but I love people with a passion, even more. The drive they have, the way they can passionately talk about the thing they love most for hours on end, and their enthusiasm always fills me with so much energy. And it doesn’t even matter what they are passionate about, it could be music, art, children, love, books, cooking, life itself, sports, personal improvement, movies, nature, travelling, DIY, fulfilling their dreams, or surviving a serious illness…..just as long as the passion is real, my love for them grows. I can’t help it; I am passionate about people with a passion.

Water
I love water in every shape and form. Why? Too many reasons actually but here are a few.
I love to drink it (plain or in the form of tea/coffee), to swim in it, shower or take a bath with it, the sound it can make, it frozen, the way it flows, how it feels, the way it makes me feel, the way it can form droplets, to watch it for hours - especially when it comes in the form of waves, rapids or a waterfall. Water is just brilliant!

The Net
A bit of an odd choice, but I think the internet is beautiful too. It has brought me wisdom, fun, insight, a different perspective, acquaintances, friends and once upon a time a even b-friend, travel companions, products, information, music, movies, books, laughter, a tear to my eye, free lance work, courage, support, blogs, news, odd videos, meetings with strangers, art, photos, ideas, contacts all over the world and so much more….
Oh, and let’s not forget, it brought me you, my fateful blog reader(s).
Thanks for stopping by today :-)

Comic Tuesday: Oh, the work.........

Can anyone point me in the direction of a museum?

Friday night I wanted to watch a movie, but I couldn’t find any DVD to my liking. Bummer, I though, why is it that you can never find a movie your in the mood for, when you are desperately want to do some mindless movie watching?
But I wasn’t willing to give up that easily, and dived into my old video collection…..how ancient! While I was going through my archive a strange thought entered my mind: pretty soon there going to be kids who don’t even know what videos are. Funny, how life seem to keep changing faster and faster. Anyway, that thought reminded me of a little story one of my friends told me some time ago.

One day her cordless phone wasn’t working and she had to make an urgent call. So, she rummaged around in the attic and dug up an old rotary dial phone. Down stairs again, she plugged it in and hooray, a dial tone. She made her call and asked one of her kids to call her at work later that day. Sure, the kid said, looking quite uncomfortable from his mom to the phone, and back again. Sure mom, the kid continued, I’ll call you, but you first have to explain to me how that phone works.

Makes you feel old, doesn’t it? Almost as if you were born in the pre-historic era or something. Other things and memories that can make you feel very antiquated too, things like:

• You remember black & white TV’s
• The remote channel changer in your family was you…..
• Your first computer system is now a museum piece
• You wore leggings when they were around for the first time
• You remember that Twix was called Raider (in some parts of Europe)
• Peanut M&M’s were called Treets and all had the same colour….brown! Chocolate M&M’s were called Bonitos and they had smiley faces on them (oh, and they did melt)
• You played records and cassettes instead of CD’s
• You were around when Sony launched the Walkman, Atari released their first game console and later on we were introduced to Nintendo
• You can also remember the 5¼ floppies and cell phones as big as refrigerators

Okay, enough of that! All those things make me feel like I should be in a museum myself now.

Back to the video. I ended up watching Sliding Doors, almost 10 years old and still fun to watch. About the movie:
We probably all have asked ourselves this question at one point in our life: What if? Well this is a movie about just that. A London woman's love life and career both hinge, unknown to her, on whether or not she catches a train. One split second sends her life in two completely different directions and in this movie you can see them both, in parallel. Very interesting to watch and above all very funny.

On Saturday I watched another, more recent, movie: Stranger than fiction. Also very funny, extremely interesting and above all utterly brilliant! Thanks for bringing it to my attention KJ’s Muse.

Now, I am off to the museum, see if they’ll have me ;-)

Look what I found (#7)

I love DIY and I love tinkering with stuff, if you have the same problem Instructables might be the site for you. They teach you how to make cool DIY projects like the Magnetic Rubik’s Dice Cube, not very useful, but you just got to love it, don’t you? Well, I do!

If you are into more useful DIY, then maybe this is more to your liking: 100 Things you can make yourself is a list of….well, you’ve guessed it, a list of 100 things you can make yourself. The list includes things ranging from extremely useful to downright silly, but you’ve to admit that some of them might come in handy one day. Not sure when I am ever going to build an igloo though :-)

Oh, and here is tip 101: Repair your hair with olive oil. Is your hair overprocessed, brittle or frizzy? Here is an easy and cheap cure. Rinse your hair with warm water. Warm one tablespoon of olive oil between the palms of your hands. (If you want you can put a few drops of essential oils in it, so it smells nicer - note: mix the oils before applying). Using your fingertips (no nails), gently massage the oil into your scalp in a circular motion. Next get another tablespoon full of oil, warm it and apply it on the rest of your hair. Place a plastic bag over your hair (if you don’t have one, use an old towel) and secure it by tying or with a hair clip. Leave it like that for 30 minutes (or more if you want). When you are done, rinse your hair well and shampoo as usual.

Not really DIY, unless you’re pretty skilful and looking for a cool and eco-friendly little hideaway? Then look no further because Eco Hab must be your thing! I came across this on treehugger and fell in love with it instantly. It’s not big, but boy it is CUTE!

Even smaller and not really suitable for humans, but still cute, is this USB powered greenhouse. The greenhouse comes with a starter pack with Marigold seeds and artificial soil to get you started! Simply plant the seeds, add water and plug the Greenhouse to any USB port! Computer interface monitors growth rate, and includes calendar, watering reminder, wallpaper and bookmark settings

And just in case you are looking for something even smaller, how about a Windows recycle bin now on sale on ebay. At least this buy won’t take up much space IRL, that’s for sure.
If you want it, you must hurry, the bidding ends August, 25.

And now for something completely different: Tadaaaaa…….The World’s strangest laws.
Did you know that in the UK, a pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants, even, if she so requests, in a policeman’s helmet. Or that it's illegal in France to name a pig Napoleon? Alex Wade celebrates the spirit of the silly season with a list of the world's most ludicrous laws. Just remember people........................


If that didn’t make you smile, maybe this video will

That’s all folks! Have a fun-filled and sunny weekend :-)

Look what I found (Warning: sombre edition)

Today I am going to post two Look what I found editions. This is going to be a pretty serious and sad one. So if you’re not in the mood for a bit of grave reality…..Come back later today for the fun edition.

Okay for those of you who’ve stayed:
Like some of you know I like to keep track of the World Press Photo entries and contest because most of the photos are just too beautiful or special to ignore. They can tell a story without one written word, can make me smile and some of them can even make me cry. Oh heck, let’s be honest, they really have the power to move me.
Just recently I got my hands on this year’s World Press Photo book and again I was awestricken by the power some of the photos still have, especially the ones which had to do with the various wars around the world, like the current Iraq war. There was one portrait (which is part of a series about war veterans) that, at the time, moved me in more ways then one and today I came across this article:

"Words Unspoken Are Rendered on War’s Faces.
One of the more shocking photographs to emerge from the current Iraq war was taken last year in a rural farm town in the American Midwest. It’s a studio portrait by the New York photographer Nina Berman of a young Illinois couple on their wedding day. The bride, Renee Kline, 21, is dressed in a traditional white gown and holds a bouquet of scarlet flowers. The groom, Ty Ziegel, 24, a former Marine sergeant, wears his dress uniform, decorated with combat medals, including a Purple Heart. Her expression is unsmiling, maybe grave. His, as he looks toward her, is hard to read: his dead-white face is all but featureless, with no nose and no chin, as blank as a pullover mask". (you can read the complete article here and find the photo here). If you want, you can view some of Nina Berman’s other photos from the same set here.

Think of them what you like. At first I was going to write a very long story about how wrong this all is, but I am not going to because the words just won’t come out (at least not in readable English). All I can say now is: STOP THE WAR!

Heavy breathing in aisle one (three, five, etc)

I am just back from grocery shopping and it was shopping with a difference today because I heard heavy breathing in the aisles. Now is that different, or what? And no, it wasn’t my imagination, wishful thinking or whatever you might come up with, it was actually happening. Here is the story.

Contentedly I entered the supermarket, checking my list while I was heading for the fruit & veg section. I got the leeks, lettuce, onions and tomatoes of my list and whilst I was checking the Granny Smith apples (I don’t want to buy the ones which are sticky to the touch, now do I?) I heard a very obscene sound. Huh, what was that? I touched the apples again, and surprise suprise there it was again. HUH? Was there someone around pulling a prank? A hidden camera show maybe? I checked, but couldn’t spot anyone or anything (as if you would with a hidden camera). Weird!

I decided to leave the apples and headed over to the bananas. I picked up a bunch and lo and behold there was the heavy breathing again. Grrrrr, how frustrating, if I could only pinpoint the origin of the sound it would make me feel a hell of a lot better, I thought. So, I looked around again and I was pretty amazed by what I saw. There was this guy, in his early thirties, holding a Cantaloupe and it almost looked as if he was turned on by the darn thing. He was stroking, kneading and smelling it at the same time as he was making sounds that would be more appropriate in a bedroom. Mesmerised I watch they guy patting his melon a bit more before he dropped it into his trolley. Okay, show’s over, let’s move on, I thought to myself, but boy was I wrong.

I bumped into him (not literally of course) a couple of times while I was getting the rest of my stuff and watched him re-enact his whole song and dance routine (or would bump and grind routine be a better choice of words ;-)) al over again. One time he even stood right next to me, while he was expressing his obnoxious sounds right into my ear. Could shivers, no not the kind you might associate with pleasure, ran down my spine…..brrr, what a creep!

I had quite enough of it (and I had all my shopping done) so I hurried off to queue up, but just as I rounded the corner I saw that boisterous guy coming over too. OMG, I so not wanted to end up in front of him. So, I lingered around the detergent section for a bit and queued up as soon as I thought it was safe to do so. I was so happy I had done that, all the people in front of me had really flushed and flustered faces. Guess he had been able to give another performance (or two). Anyway, I didn’t see him again until I exited the store and man was I in for a big surprise. There he was………………..

touching himself. NOOOOOOO! Of course not! Don’t be ridiculous (it would have made for an ending with a difference though, wouldn’t it?). But let me assure you, the ending is bit different then you might expect anyway, because it took me quite by surprise too.
So, there he was, just finished putting his shopping away in his backpack and getting ready to mount his Scootmobiel (I don’t know what you call them in English or if you actually have them) Mobility Scooter (thank for your assistance Lord Hutton), groaning, moaning and breathing heavily all the way. OMG, I felt really embarrassed. All the time I had been judging that guy, thinking he was a real perv while he was just a handicapped man who is probably proud he can still get his own groceries in. *blush* Oh well, that will teach! Never, ever judge a book by its cover!

Don’t try this at home …….

Especially not when there are for seasons in one day (or any other day for that matter).

Last weekend I was pottering in the garden wearing flip-flops. Now, everybody knows you shouldn’t do garden work wearing those, because accidents can happen while your feet are exposed like that, particularly when you are working with a hoe or a spade. You could accidentally chop off your toe for instance, or hoe right into your foot. Luckily for me, none of the above happened. Hooray!

I did, however, discover something else you shouldn’t try whilst wearing flip-flops. You shouldn’t, and I repeat, SHOULD NOT, try to get a slipping flip-flop back on your foot while entering your house, because this is what you probably end up with a broken toe...........................................nail! I was trying to get my flip-flop back on at the same time as stepping over the threshold, but for some reason I miscalculated and my foot didn’t end up on the other side of the threshold, but bumped against it (with great force). Ouch!

Okay, it was a bit more than just ouch; to be honest I almost passed out! My body can handle pain pretty good, but this was pain of a different variety, this was an excruciating and nauseating pain. When I was able to stand upright again, I hobbled to the nearest couch, fell down (I wouldn’t call the thing I did, sitting down) and was able to put my head between my knees. Right, that was one problem solved, namely how not to faint on hard surfaces, next task: eagerly waiting for the endorphins to kick in. Boy, they take their time, don’t they? Where are they, when you desperately need them? In a land, far, far away, I guess. But they did made it in the end, it’s was a miracle! Oh, not that they finally arrived at their destination, but the endorphins itself. They should bottle them, because it really makes you feel pretty good instantly. Today, the pain is almost gone…..hooray again! One problem though, I can’t wear my running shoes :-( So, no running for me this week. I am a little bummed out about that actually, since it messes up my running schedule, but on the other hand it gives me time to do other things like……rearranging my wardrobe. Oh, how exiting…..NOT!

Well, it was more a case of throwing things out which are still suitable for donation and checking what is still trendy enough for next autumn. While I was rummaging through my wardrobe I came across my summer clothes and I thought to myself ‘well, isn’t that depressing, a lot of summery clothes and you’ve only worn maybe ten of them this year.’ Earlier this year I even bought a summer dress (must have had a momentary lapse of reason at the time) for the first time in …..well, eons I guess…. And I haven’t been able to wear it even once. Now, how sad is that! Oh well, next weekend we are going to have some nice weather again (they say). Let’s hope for the best, because today it’s like we are having four seasons in one day (reminds me of this beautiful song), autumn-like gales, winter-like rain, spring temperatures and a few seconds of summer-like sunshine. And still they say: “The weather isn’t changing!” Yeah, right! *sigh*

But enough of that, I am not going to bore you any further with my depressing thoughts. No, I am going to surprise you with this, a very interesting pain fact ;-). According to Wikipedia: “Pain is part of the body's defence system: it triggers mental problem-solving strategies that seek to end the painful experience, and it promotes learning, making repetition of the painful situation less likely.” Interesting isn’t it? I think it is, but it also leaves me with one question, though: If you should learn from it, why on earth do you keep bumping the thing you hurt in the first place?

Not a Comic Tuesday! Today it’s HUG day!

I know today is going to be tough for some of the people I know on- and/or offline. So instead of a comic/cartoon, just a little hug! I hope it will brighten up your day.

Words of Wisdom

Mind, Body & Soul Sessions (#42)

Dream big and go for it!

Last Friday, a Dutch celebrity passed away just a few weeks after he was diagnosed with cancer. The cancer had spread throughout his body, so he knew there wasn’t going to be a cure, but still, his sudden passing came as a surprise to a lot people.
But I am not going to write about his passing here (or did I just do that already?) or about the cancer, no, today I am going to write about something that is related (well sort of) to all of this.

I wasn’t a big fan of the guy, although I’ve to admit I liked him and I admired him for all the things he has achieved in his life. He was a writer of 40 books, an entertainer, a TV presenter, a musical star, a singer, a producer, an actor, a columnist, a buddy and a priest.
In one of his last interviews he said something like (I can’t find the newspaper article anymore so I am not going to quote his exact words):

I am not afraid to die, it’s just a bit too soon, but I am confident it’s going to be alright. I had a great life, accomplished my goals and did things I never thought I could. Life has been tremendously satisfying and I am very content.

And that is precisely where I am going with this.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could all say/or think that before we die? I think it would be amazing! I have known a lot of people who never got the chance to realize their dreams. One example: my dad! He always wanted to take early retirement as soon as he could, and travel the world with my mom. He never did, because just one year before he finally could, he passed away.
I did learn something from it though, a very valuable lesson: never ever postpone things you really, really want to do and stop doing things you absolutely hate. So, I travelled, went to see places I always dreamed about and later on I gave up my job (which I absolutely resented, because it was sucking the life out of me). Sure, things have been tough at times, with little or no money to spend, periods of depression and rejection, but I am still here, alive and kicking, and I have never regretted the decisions I made. In fact all of this has made me stronger and happier, and I can look back on a pleasant life, I can even say I am content. Sure, I do have other dreams and I am still working on those, but by fulfilling some of them already I think I’ve changed my life around, it has made me feel richer and more content.

So, if you have dreams, big plans, want to see places, meet people, don’t wait until it’s to late! Get up, get out, and go for it! Dig up your dreams, dust them off, give them some fresh air and sunshine (or water in the form of rain, if you are lucky enough to live in Europe this summer) and remember how great they were when you first got them.
And I know, taking risks can be very uncomfortable and scary, because it can lead to failure, but it won’t kill you. Just accept the likelihood of failure, because without failure there can be no success. The choice is yours! When you get to the end of the line, do you want to end up in ‘mediocre village’ or the ‘excellent city’? Life is not meant to be endured, it is meant to be lived and experienced. Just remember you have a great opportunity and that is the opportunity to live.

So, go on, live your life to the fullest, it’s not that complicated and focus on your dreams. Don’t let life’s trials despair you and don’t let friends or family get in your way, because nobody has the right to trample your dreams. If they want to spend their life watching from the sidelines, fine, their choice. If they want to be jealous just because you have the guts to go out there and follow your dream, fine, let them be jealous. But never ever give up on your dreams and don’t allow anyone to tell you that the sky is the limit, when there have been guys on the moon!

Have a great Sunday!

Look what I found (#6)

No, don’t worry, it’s not going to be another Duct tape story – done that! It’s time for something completely different :-)



Strange, hilarious, shocking and creepy ads from the past century, for instance! Some of these are really unbelievable. Check out the Ronald Reagan/Chesterfield one, or how about that Vibra Finger. Oh well, there is even leaflet supplying you with all the Syphilis facts.



Or let’s go for a swim……if we can find the water, that is…….

Imaging
This next one is a bit peculiar. Did you know there is such a thing as a website filled with deleted images? Now how strange is that? How on earth can a deleted image appear online, surely that is some sort of contradictio in terminis. But enough of that….it is still an interesting site!
If that is not your thing, maybe this one is. Making beautiful things usually takes a lot more time then destroying beautiful things, but not for Martin Klimas, he destroys a lot of clay to make his art – in other words – he destroys figurines and photographs them the moment they are smashed to smithereens. You can find more of his work here.

A trip down memory lane
Old enough to remember that good old cassette tape? If so, maybe this next website will transport you back in time, because it's where you can find all thing cassette tape :-)



Cheesy commercials
Isn’t it funny how commercials work….or not work ;-)
This one makes me want to sample the cheese:
The next one, on the other hand, makes me want to get on that boat and and sail off into the sunset! Do they even mention the cheese? I just can’t seem to focus on the product they are trying to sell. Now, how odd is that? ;-)

Okay, that's all folks! Have a AbFab weekend!

Other things you can do with Duct tape.

It looks like it’s going to be Duct tape week on my blog. Not only have I been using it frequently these last few days, but it has also been in the news recently.

"'Duct tape bandit' charged in robbery

ASHLAND, Ky. - A man accused of being the "Duct Tape Bandit" has gotten into a sticky situation. The man, who had his head wrapped in duct tape to conceal his identity, walked into a liquor store on Friday, Ashland police said.

Shamrock Liquors store manager Bill Steele had some duct tape of his own, but his was wrapped around a wooden club that sent the robber fleeing, according to a report by WSAZ-TV in Huntington, W.Va.”
You can read the whole story here or watch some video footage here.

And BTW, did you know there are whole websites and blogs dedicated to the use of Duct tape? Well, maybe you did, but I didn’t! Check out this one for instance, fun guaranteed.

Comic Tuesday: The things you can do with Duct tape ;-)