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Brussels Blog
Brussels Blog
Source: Brussels Blog
I take it that everyone has seen the insulting picture on the cover of the February 22 edition of Focus, a lightweight German news magazine? Under the headline ”Swindlers in the euro family”, it shows the Venus de Milo statue, a monument of ancient Greek civilisation, sticking up a middle finger at Germany. In this way the magazine’s editors convey, as offensively [...]
Source: Brussels Blog
The European Union needs to raise its economic growth potential - on that, at least, the bloc’s 27 member-states and the European Commission agree. Otherwise Europe risks a speedy descent into relative economic decline, and its cherished “social model” - combining a liberal market economy with cradle-to-grave public services - will be increasingly unaffordable. Will [...]
Source: Brussels Blog
Greece plan tax rises and spending cuts (FT reporters, FT) Hedge funds prosper from Greek debt (FT reporters, FT) Iceland renews talk on E3.9bn debt dispute (Andrew Ward & George Parker, FT) Europe’s labour unrest (Lex, FT) Time for Goldman to come clean (Breakingviews via NYT) It’s the economics, stupid (Simon Tilford, CER blog)
Source: Brussels Blog
The most important speech delivered in Europe last week came from Herman Van Rompuy, the European Union’s full-time president. It had real depth and did not try to conceal the EU’s problems behind a mask of unconvincing optimism. The speech addressed how to strengthen Europe’s role in a world in which the Old Continent appears in danger of slipping into faster relative [...]
Source: Brussels Blog
Lex: Greece/Goldman (FT) Europe’s bear problem (Charlemagne, The Economist) The market’s Achilles heel (John Authers, FT)
Source: Brussels Blog
Greek shipping has enjoyed a surprisingly good year. But there are difficult times ahead for an industry that faces increased competition and dangerous levels of overcapacity. function doLoad() {var mp = new MavenPlayer('mp_blogs');mp.setParameter('checkSystemId', 'systemRequirementsHTML'); mp.setQueryParamsAsVariables(false);mp.setVariable("GEO_CODE","USA");mp.setVariable("referralObject", "14784435");mp.setVariable("CHANNEL","View from Europe");mp.setVariable("CHANNEL_URL", "http://www.ft.com/cms/af1f4356-e399-11dc-8799-0000779fd2ac.html");mp.write('flashParentHTML');}function doContextMenu() {return maven.PlayerObjectUtil.doContextMenu();}doLoad();
Source: Brussels Blog
Google faces Brussels antitrust scrutiny (Richard Waters and Nikki Tait, FT) Greeks take to the streets over austerity plan (FT) Greece threatens more than the euro (Gideon Rachman, FT) German deficit breaches EU stability pact (Quentin Peel, FT)
Source: Brussels Blog
Nothing illustrates the sensitivity of the European Union’s relationship with Israel better than the statement which EU foreign ministers issued on Monday complaining about the use of forged European passports in last month’s killing of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, the Hamas commander, in Dubai. The statement contained several sentences that were masterpieces of waffle, such as the following: [...]
Source: Brussels Blog
The euro will face bigger tests than Greece (George Soros, FT) Greece looks at tougher budget cuts (Dimitris Kontogiannis, FT) No borrower solidarity (P O Neill, A fistful of Euros)
Source: Brussels Blog
You know that the European Union is in trouble when Russia offers more intelligent advice on the eurozone’s debt crisis than Spain, the country that holds the EU’s rotating presidency. Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s president, disclosed the other day that he had recommended to George Papandreou, Greece’s prime minister, that the Greek government should request assistance [...]
Mahschocolate
Mahschocolate
Source: Mahschocolate
I went to a concert last month — the artist is Coeur de Pirate, a wonderfully talented Quebecoise who an amazing live performer. Everyone was taking pictures, so I did too!
She is well known for her song “Comme des Enfants“, which is light and adorable. Listen to it a few times, and then try to [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
I didn’t grow up with Sesame Street, but got to enjoy it with my little brother while he was growing up. While I was in Belgium, I started to sing the school bus song one time, and then (to my horror), found out that Sesame Street never really made it with the French-speaking population. I [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
I recently got a request to learn more about the things I appreciate about Pedram, other than his conscious respectful decision to keep the porcelain bowl spotless, and I automatically thought of a few things I wish he would change, like his incessant desire to leave me alone at home for 9 days alone with [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
It is no secret that I am obsessed with animals and their well-being, but I am often torn between my love for animals and our dependency on them as humans.
I loathe factory farming. Yet, I am not a vegetarian. I do, however, try to limit my meat intake, and try to only purchase from local [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
Alone for nine days, my doggie and I
We decide to leave the house, since the weather was dry
We went to the park, where the snow was abundant
And threw around the ball, a chore that is redundant
Then the ball disappeared around the linked fence
In order to get to it, we had to climb a snow hill [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
Last weekend, I was in Florida, with the crazy cousins, and my sister took this picture with my phone
In case you were wondering, this is me happy, dancing like a fool because I am not wearing 20 layers. I am not just happy, I am exuberant, ebullient, vivacious, alive! Today, a week later, it has [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
Last Friday, I got a package. It was addressed just to me. And it was from my Valentine.
I have had the same Valentine for about 10 years now, someone who is so thoughtful and considerate. I got so giddy when I saw the handwriting, cause it is a dead giveaway on who it is. Isn’t [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
Scene — I am at my first doctor appointment at a clinic in Canada. I have an appointment at 3:30, I show up at 3pm. I am never early to an appointment, but am giddy in delight to try out the health care system in my new residence. I am directed to the waiting room, [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
Are you planning to watch the winter Olympics in Vancouver this year? It starts tomorrow people! This year, Canada may have a chance of winning Olympic gold, for the very first time on their own soil. It didn’t happen in Calgary, and it didn’t happen in Montreal. This year, all my colleagues and Canadian friends [...]
Source: Mahschocolate
hair on husband form!
why must you hide face from me?
miss bare cheeks and chin
blog.forret.com
blog.forret.com
Source: blog.forret.com
I remember that before I started photography on a serious level, I had some understanding of shutter speed, but none of aperture and focal length. Even when I read what they meant, I still couldn’t ‘picture’ it, had no feeling for the numbers. Let’s leave ‘aperture’ for another time and just concentrate for now on the concept [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
At the Pixagogo reunion dinner the other evening, I was reminded by one of my ex-colleagues Steven (‘Beukie‘) that back in 2003 I was having some fun with remixes/mashups. More specifically, I took some vocals of the Belgian “Idool 2003″ preselections, and added music to them. To make the exercise more fun, I took samples [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
In one corner of my apartment: my fixed telephone line. In another my printer/scanner/fax device. Challenge: run a wire from one to the other, every time you rearrange the furniture. Recently I investigated web fax services like eFax, WebFax, RingCentral but for a low volume user like me they’re too expensive. You pay a lot of [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
Via hackerfactor I came across this gem: a 7-episode dissection of just how bad the 1999 Star Wars: Phantom Menace was. The guy who made it has a very specific style, insightful, funny but sometimes quite disturbing. Try episode one: Episode two: and three The rest can be found on Youtube. Related posts:Don’t send me a video, send me a [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
The big disappearing act When Rupert Murdoch announced that he would remove his sites from Google (in order to make a deal with Microsoft, so that only Bing would have the NewsCorp pages, as we now assume), he apparently wasn’t kidding. Although all Google web sites still indicate that e.g. MySpace has 179 million pages in [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
I did a bandwidth test the other day with the iPhone SpeedTest tool. I wanted to compare the speed using (standard) GPRS, using 3G and my own Wifi. The results were all a power of ten apart: iPhone on Proximus GPRS: 35 kbps (download & upload) iPhone on Proximus 3G: 350 kbps (download & upload) iPhone via Wifi: [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
I was using my iPhone to read my Twitter feed (Twitterrific) and Facebook and when comparing the two, I liked one thing about Facebook that Twitter/Twitterific does not have: when some one posts a URL, you get a preview icon and a short text. This way you can have a rough idea of what the [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
I was downloading a free iPhone app at noon, and I thought: some of these applications have no good alternative in the browser world. Imagine everyone could start using/buying the Apple iPhone/iPod Touch applications right in their browser. You give your Apple ID, you purchase an app like ColorSplash and off you go. Some of [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
Just the other day I was reminded of the existence of Wordle (via the Music Zeitgeist project). Wordle makes an esthetically pleasing word cloud of any assembled text you throw at it. “The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text.” Ithought: let’s see what that gives with movie [...] Related posts:
Source: blog.forret.com
So I decided to let Facebook check my Gmail contact list to see if I had missed some contacts (people using aliases, etc …). After carefully selecting a couple of FB friends to invite (a buddy from the army, …), I clicked ‘Select’ and then ‘OK’ on the next screen that I supposed was a [...] Related posts:
Bartlog
Bartlog
Source: Bartlog
We're packing our suitcase for tomorrow. We're going to Paris, where I will attend a seminar on organisational development from Wednessday until Friday. So that gave us the opportunity to add two days for ourselves. Mrs.B will stay until Tuesday evening, so we'll have (almost) two days to stroll around in the big city under the Eiffel tower.
We've both been in Paris before, when we were students. So that's a long time ago, but Paris will be Paris. I expect the Seine will still be there, and the Louvre, and the Arc de Triomphe and of course the Champs Elysées. And there will be real french croissants with the truck load all for Mrs.B, and French cuisine and cafés and...
Ooooh, I can't wait!
Source: Bartlog
Mrs.B and I have an announcement to make:
Those of you who want to knit baby socks: you have until the 14th of September. Unless he or she decides to pop up two weeks early like his/her big brother.
Wolf said he would like a baby sister. I second that motion, but Mrs.B says she can't make any promisses.
Source: Bartlog
I've been at home since Monday, when my body simply refused its normal duties to get up at the sound of Mrs.B's alarm (I mean the sound of her alarm clock of course). For once, I haven't been sneezing the tiles off the roof, it's just that I feel like a wet mop. I couldn't hit a dent in a wet newspaper at the moment.
The doctor said I've got a throat infection, which really surprised me. Normally this means I can hardly breathe, won't be able to eat for at least three days and have to invent a new coctail of drugs to get enough relieve from the pain to allow me to sleep.
The first two days I've been sleeping a lot, but now I've reached the stage where my mind says 'ok, let's get back to business', but my body still isn't up to shape by a mile. I actually feel the pain in my upper arms as I type this. When I climb up the stairs, snails agressively sound their horn and overtake me while waving their middle finger at me (yes, we have snails with middle fingers in this house).
So there's nothing else to do besides feeling immensely bored and watch daytime television. On a positive note: I've infected Mrs.B so she had to stay at home today too. Haha! Well, that would be funny if it didn't mean that I now have to share the remote and don't have the house to myself any more. I hate to have people around me when I'm ill. Just leave me to rot in peace, thank you very much.
Source: Bartlog
I left my umbrella on the train yesterday morning. Again. It was a pretty crappy umbrella, it was one of those compact models that shoot up and open when you push a button. But mine would open by itself, at random moments. This is especially annoying because I carry it attached to my rucksack, between the pack itself and my back. This had huge potential for comedy, as it would open invariably when I would cross a corridor or stand in the elevator. Suddenly the handle would should out and catch passers-by or bystanders.
Of course, ever since I've lost it, it's been raining every time I go out. And the weatherman said it's going to rain all week. And the week after too, probably. Unless I buy me a new umbrella quickly, Belgium will drown and we'll have mudslides and stuff like on Madeira.
Source: Bartlog
Our neighbour Jeff died last week from a hearth attack. I went to his funeral yesterday morning.
Jeff was a nice bloke, always ready to help you out. His pride and joy was his vegetable garden, in front of his house, and he would regularly supply us with all kinds of treats. He was always ready for a friendly chat, but once he hooked you he wouldn't let you off for the next forty minutes.
Once Mrs.B had locked herself out, and the only window that was open was on the top floor, right under the roof. So Jeff climbed out of his window on the second floor (third floor for Americans) and walked over the roofs to climb into our window and open the door for Mrs.B.
That was the kind of guy he was.
In his younger years he was an avid motorcross fanatic, he even fought for the Belgian championship title for a couple of times. In his old age, he would still tinker with bikes and make a lot of racket when he tested them, together with his son.
We'll miss him.
Source: Bartlog
6.27 AM/6.30 AM: Mrs.B's alarm goes off, with its high pitched voice. 'Time to get up', she shouts in the optimistic voice of a true morning person.
I ignore her. I will not listen to her, nor wake up, because it's not 6.30 yet. Her alarm clock is wrong and mine is right. My alarm clock/radio says it is 6.27, so hers is wrong. I don't care if she says that hers is right because it has the same time as the television's clock downstairs (which gets its time from the cable company). I don't need to verify my alarm clock's time because I know I am right and she is wrong.
Moreover, it is entirely besides the point whether it is 6.30 or not. I do not get up before 6.35. My schedule would fall apart in shambles if I got out five - nay seven! - minutes before my waking up time.
Mrs.B will not listen to reason, especially not when it's proclaimed as a series of mumbling noises and grunts from under the duvet. She throws the blankets away. My body is suddenly confronted with the winter cold and goes in shock.
Before I can recover and smash my wife to death, she's already stomping around and opening closets and making noise and throwing items on clothing on the bed. I feebly reach for the duvet but she's on to me and uses physical violence to get me up.
I'm very tickly.
So she storms out and I follow her down the stairs, trying not to trip over and mentally preparing myself for another glorious day.
---
6.57 AM/7.00 AM: Mrs.B barges into Wolf's room and yells in a high pitched voice: 'Time to get up'.
Wolf ignores her. He will not listen to her, nor wake up. Mum is wrong and his biological clock is right. It's still too early to play, so mum is wrong. He don't cares if she says that its 'waky-waky time' because he doens't have to pee. If he doesn't have to pee it is clear the he is right and she is wrong.
Mrs.B will not listen to reason, especially not when it's proclaimed as a series of mumbling noises and grunts from under the duvet. She throws the blankets away. His little body is suddenly confronted with the winter cold and goes in shock.
Before he can recover and smack his mother on the head, she's already stomping around and opening closets and making noise and throwing items on clothing on the bed. Wolf feebly reaches for the duvet but she's on to him and puts him on his potty.
Ok, he DOES have to pee.
So she pushes him out of the room and he climbs down the stairs, trying not to trip over and mentally preparing himself for another glorious sandwich with chocolate paste.
Source: Bartlog
I just spent half an hour trying to log in, getting more and more confused until I almost started to panic. I tried every password I've been using for the past six months, but nothing would work. Did I make an error while resetting my password the last time?
The I noticed 'Caps lock' was on.
It will take me two weeks to recover from feeling this stupid.
Source: Bartlog
I really, REALLY hate weblogs with white text on a black background. Especially when they have a small typeface. After reading three sentences my eyes go twirling around and everythings becomes blurry.
Or I should stop drinking vodka while browsing weblogs.
Source: Bartlog
I've been outside all day, collecting money for the victims of the earthquake in Haiti. I've been at home for a couple of hours now, but I'm still cold. If I accidentally touch Mrs.B's feet with mine during the night, she'll jump clean through the roof.
El Gothico Español
El Gothico Español
Source: El Gothico Español
a) Darwin - idiot with fluffy beard (confirmed) and logic
or
b) idiot with beard, (confirmed) Darwin and fluffy logic
This is not a fucking test, merely a scrambling of words but this is why mankind wages war and pays itself nothing.
Oh how the European Commission laughed.
Meanwhile, back in the real world........
A circus owner runs an ad for a lion tamer and two people show up. One is a good looking older man in his mid-sixties and the other is a gorgeous blonde in her mid-twenties.
The circus owner tells them, "I'm not going to sugar coat it. This is one ferocious lion. He ate my last tamer so you guys better be good or you're history. Here's your equipment -- chair, whip and a gun. Who wants to try out first?"
The girl says, "I'll go first." She walks past the chair, the whip and the gun and steps right into the lion's cage. The lion starts to snarl and pant and begins to charge her. About half way there, she throws open her coat revealing her beautiful naked body. The lion stops dead in his tracks, sheepishly crawls up to her and starts licking her ankles. He continues to lick her calves, kisses them, licks and kisses her privates for several minutes and rests his head at her feet.
The circus owner's mouth is on the floor. He says, "I've never seen a display like that in my life." He then turns to the older man and asks, "Can you top that?"
The older man replies, "No problem, just get that fucking lion out of the way!!!"
Source: El Gothico Español
Continuing on the topic of lying bastards who should die - let's discuss 'Organised Religion'.
Personally, I do not give a flying fuck what religion you adhere to. If it makes you happy - jolly good.
If you believe in something, I am happy for you.
BUT
DO NOT try to convert me to your religion.
If I choose to believe in a god, I am perfectly capable of making that choice before you accost me with your fake bullshit.
Realistacally - how convinced can you be?
All organised religion is shite - but, feel free to prove me wrong.
Source: El Gothico Español
I really need to read the bible again - to remind myself of why I so enjoyed criticising it in the past.
For those of you that haven't read it, you should just for the incredible bollocks that it spouts.
I think I may have to have a regular Gothic Post, every Friday - just so that the religious nutters have time to polish their foreheads before getting twatted with Gothic wisdom.
Here are a few examples that were "borrowed" from another author:-
Leviticus (25:44) - states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations - cool, that''s Holland fucked
Leviticus (15: 19-24) - There can be no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness. The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.
Leviticus (1:9) - If you burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord. The problem is, my neighbours. They claim the odour is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?
Leviticus (19:27) - Most men get their hair trimmed, even though this is expressly forbidden by . How should they die?
Leviticus (11:6-8) - claims that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but can I still play American football if I wear gloves?
Sorry religious type people - The Goth is back
Source: El Gothico Español
Funnily enough, although the title gives it away somewhat, I have been known to offend people. I make no apologies for doing so when said offended people opened themselves to criticism.
Some time ago, I used to spend my time on the train coming up with ludicrous thoughts to provoke institutions into reaction, which I would subsequently post on this blog - with some success I might add. However, I had the time to do it as I was sat on a train travelling from home to work.
Having changed jobs though, I no longer needed to use the train service from Bruxelles and didn't have the time to formulate bizarre ideas. Hence I turned to Two-Facedbook.
Bad mistake.
There are some scary little monsters in that cavern of depravity.
If I want to criticise an individual, I will do it to their face - even if it means I receive a kick in the bollocks for my honesty.
Looking on the bright side - if you want to lighten your personal luggage of superficial friends - use Two-Facedbook.
Thus, I am back (for now) - until the religious nutters freak me out again.
para mí soy sencillo - si usted no quiere saber, no lea
Source: El Gothico Español
"Mystery still surrounds a missing Russian-manned cargo ship" - cool - is that like a Klingon cloaking device? No wonder you can't find it then.
I am so intrigued by the bullshit that emanates from the crusty old gits that they wheel out to give their opinion. So let me elucidate:-
'We cannot find the ship - it has disappeared off the map"
- not a very good map then - is that the version where the world is still flat?
"The cargo was not worth much but they could have hidden valuable cargo amongst the lumber" - yes, that is exactly what I would do with a squillion dollars of cocaine - put it in a very slow boat, with no obvious escape route.
"We think that it's pirates - probably African pirates" - excellent, let's stereotype the pirates who are not from the Caribbean at all, but they have very good sun-tans
"We know they are professional because the transponder unit was deactivated" - so only MacGyver can use a penknife? You know nothing of the - A Team.
"It is possible that nuclear weapons were the target" - oh fuck off - stop watching James Bond movies you old twat. Get up to date and watch XXX or GI Joe.
So now, with trepidation, we wait for the finale. Could the ship possibly have been spotted entering the Bermuda Triangle? Has the ship been beamed up by aliens who were desperate to save their dying planet?
As they started the bullshit contest, my turn now:-
The ship had a cargo of trees and they did what nature intended - they tried to put down roots.
Nice in principle, but not so nice if you are in a boat.
How the lobsters laughed..........
Source: El Gothico Español
It's been a long time since I worked on a helpdesk. When I started working in IT a couple of years ago (or so) it was considered to be a good introduction to how a company works.
This is probably quite a sound theory, for the people who came up with the idea, but not for those who have to work on one.
I can only reference what I have experienced - helpdesks for Computer Systems, so if you disagree please call the number below and we will divert you to India.
1) - The customer is not always right - in the majority of cases, they are fucking idiots.
2) - You cannot fix a problem if it is not described correctly
3) - Managers of helpdesk systems are morons who know nothing except how to misjudge their own worth
Anyway, I didn't last very long on the helpdesk because apparently I had an attitude problem.
So fast forward a number of years and having worked in IT for a while, someone, in the infinite wisdom decided that a 'back to basics' approach would benefit all.
Another shit idea - perfectly executed.
"Welcome to the Gothic Helpdesk - what is your current problem?"
'When I logged onto the system at 07:30...'
"No you didn't - your computer came up at 08:12 and you mistyped your password the first time"
'How did you know that? - well, anyway, the things didn't come out of the printer so there is an issue with the system'
"No - everything would have come out of the printer if you had put paper in it, which you didn't and unplugging it and replugging it in again does not make paper grow"
'There was an issue with the printer so I had to reboot it'
"Yeah - a lack of fucking paper issue - with a big flashing message saying NO PAPER you muppet"
'But I checked the manual and it said....'
"What colour is it?"
'The printer?'
"No, the bloody manual"
'I don't know I've never seen it...'
*dial tone*
NEXT
Source: El Gothico Español
Not many things could have aroused me from my blogging hibernation - well, nothing has until now.
Michael Jackson is dead.
Sorry Wacko fans but, it was rather inevitable. I am sure there are squillions of people in the world who are really sad - I'm not one of them but, they feel some connection I do not share.
I was watching the coverage of the story on CNN with a Gothic curiosity and was beguiled by the reporters. I particularly liked the one stationed outside the house in Bel Air who said "This street usually has vans with fans (sic) who sleep here but they have all gone now to UCLA " and my first thought was - well what the fuck are you doing there then?
Later, I was watching BBC News and they had an interview with Uri Geller (famous for his bending spoon thing) and a friend of the now dead Jackson.
"So you were good friends with Michael" said the interviewer
"We had our ups and downs - sometimes we didn't even talk" he replied
Not surprised - if you kept fucking his cutlery up.
BUT, the real moment for me was when they started interviewing fans. Some were devastated (don't get it myself but, OK), some were celebrating his life (made a little more sense) but one woman said.........
"This will be remembered as the day Jesus died"
Er - no. You stupid little woman. If base your whole life on fiction the nasty goblins in pointy hats will get you.
However, I must thank Apple for my iPod. For the rest of the year, Michael Jackson will be on high rotation on every radio station. In my ears, I will be listening to Lacuna Coil.
Source: El Gothico Español
Collecting Free Stuff
I'm not really sure where the obsession started, I guess it was in my childish years, but, I like 'free stuff'.
By 'free stuff' I am referring to items that you would normaly have to purchase with money.
A balloon is not 'free stuff' - it's just childish nonsense, unless it's filled with helium and then you can attach it to something (like a cat) because they were not designed to fly.
Getting 'Free Stuff' is not that difficult - companies are giving away pointless shit every day. Pens, T-shirts, umbrellas etc.
Am I going to buy their products/services? Am I fuck - just give me the 'free stuff'.
Once in a while, I give bag fulls of 'free stuff' away to charity. Will they use it? - I doubt it.
Can they use it to twat fish on the head and feed a family for a week? - maybe, if it's a really stupid fish.
The point is, 'free stuff' is good' and, Mr Taxman "you can slide down the razorblade of life, using your bollocks for brakes"
Meanwhile, back in reality :
Cool - look. You can use this laser thingy for
ooooopppsssss
Source: El Gothico Español
Sorry to any who have been visiting but I've been busier than a carpet cleaner in a porno cinema. Not going to bore you with the details. Here is a quiz someone asked me to do - you should try it if you can be arsed. I did and I laughed out loud at the results. No point cheating - you are only cheating yourself.
So here are the rules:-
IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?
So, here's how it works:
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool
Here are mine - scarily accurate by coincidence??
Opening Credits:
If - The Cult
Waking Up:
Shame - Drowning Pool
First Day At School:
Fallin' Up - Black Eyed Peas
Making Your New Best Friend:
Illegal I Song - Velvet Revolver
Falling In Love:
Iron Horse/Born To Lose - Motorhead
Breaking Up:
Replica - Fear Factory
Prom:
Disappear Here - Moonspell
Graduation:
I Guess I'll Never Know - Clawfinger
Life's Okay:
Home - Sevendust
Death of a Close Friend:
Fear Of The Dark (Live at Rock in Rio) - Iron Maiden
Mental Breakdown:
Jumping Someone Else's Train - The Cure
Driving:
Getcha Groove On - Limp Bizkit
Flashback:
Discotheque Wreck - Terrorvision
Getting Back Together:
Stay Away - Nirvana
Wedding Scene:
A Thousand Lies - Machine Head
Birth of Child:
Bleeding Mascara - Atreyu
Car Accident:
Black Dog - Led Zeppelin
Final Battle:
All These Things I Hate (Revolve Around Me) - Bullet For My Valentine
Death Scene:
Hypnotize - Audioslave
Funeral Song:
Lustmord - Moonspell
End Credits:
Take It Out On Me - Bullet For My Valentine
(tx to Anthony for the idea)
Source: El Gothico Español
I recall writing things - it's all a bit vague now.
I seem to remember idiots without an ounce of sense complaining that I did't believe in Jesus - King of the Easter Eggs.
Apologies for having read your Book Of Bollocks more than you did.
I recall complaining about the fact that my children - eek - mini-Goths did not understand why
FUCK
I actually remember why I started writing in the first place.
Shit happens
Mannekin Pics
Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Source: Mannekin Pics
Berlaymonster
Berlaymonster
Source: Berlaymonster
You can all stop trying to find them.
The revealing photos of a senior commission official BM reported on last week (see below) have been removed from the social networking site in question.
It took a day or so, but BM news clearly travels. Over the weekend the offending gallery magically disappeared. It now seems the whole profile has also been wiped from the interweb altogether.
So you can now all stop furiously googling names you think it may be in the hope of stumbling across the images.
And BM's lips are sealed. So stop asking...
Source: Berlaymonster
Source: Berlaymonster
Source: Berlaymonster
Neelie Kroes has garnered a reputation over five years as a tough European antitrust regulator, taking on big companies for running cartels or for stomping on smaller rivals.
She also, however, is known for her often tortured public speaking (see one fine typical example here).
Today she did little to dispell that reputation, in a three-hour Q&A with euro-MPs over her new job as telecoms commissioner.
Her answers sounded often as though a box of magnetic telecoms and political buzzwords had been thrown at a fridge, along with another box made up exclusively of tiles bearing the meaningless "so-to-say" (or 'sho-to-shay' in her trademark Dutch drawl).
As if to cement this reknown for speaking in riddles, she also chose to sport a large sparkling brooch in the form of a question mark.
Telecoms companies beware, there's somebody new drafting your regulations - and you may not understand them ...
Source: Berlaymonster
From today's Metrotime, which makes a lot more sense if you don't speak Dutch:
Plus an exclusive bonus for Berlaymonster readers:
Source: Berlaymonster
When the 'Monster noted in disparaging terms the European Commission's cringeworthy campaign to get more women into IT jobs , we had no idea quite the lengths of misjudgement Brussels would go to.
Source: Berlaymonster
Tepid on the heels of BM's limerick efforts some time ago (see here) Celebrate the appointment of our two glorious leaders on the world stage: write a Haiku.
For inspiration, here they are in all their glory, and here's a few lines of doggerel to get you started:
Most interesting thing
And useful at that, his name:
Five syllables long
The magician says
Pick a card, pick any card,
Anyone but Blair
A woman and man
In the glare of autumn sun
But who are they both
BM
Source: Berlaymonster
Twinkletoes entertainer Lionel Blair has reacted with outrage at a French-led snub to his ambitions to become EU president.
The septegenarian star of stage and the small screen is understood to be 'incandescent' at his effective early exclusion from the race to be the continent's figurehead.
Close friends say he would have been the best head the EU could have wished for.
But while it was clear he was now not going to come first, he was not in the habit of withdrawing, they confided.
He still hopes to pull it off in the face of his critics.
With Blair all but out of the running, Christopher Biggins is now favoured to get the plum job.
Source: Berlaymonster
French diplomats today responded with an interesting excuse to accusations of fiscal irresponsibility for spending 245,000 euros on the construction of a never-used shower in the Grand Palace : it was art.
[insert 'allo 'allo accent here]
"Of course it was never used. It was never intended to be used. The shower was an artistic not a functional installation. A visual demonstration of Gallic strength, never to submit to the weakness of frequent washing, not like those sappy Americans with their power showers and baths the size of Versailles.
The stench of our armpits is the stench of power. And Sarko is the strongest of all. When Carla hugs him, she has tears in her eyes. Tears of a woman experiencing that 'strength' close at hand. We wanted the world to see him not showering, and cower before us."
"You think only the Czechs can do satirical art? Mais non, monsieur." they added, before flouncing out the room in a cloud of Chanel.
No wonder the Belges call deoderant a 'douche francaise'.
Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Source: Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Source: Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Source: Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Source: Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Source: Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Source: Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Source: Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Source: Try Not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Kim Bah Lee
Kim Bah Lee
Source: Kim Bah Lee
This is a book review with a difference. This week’s unique selling point is that I read A Tall Man in a Low Land about three months ago, lent it to somebody, and can’t remember an awful lot about it, apart from that I was impressed. It’s about a man (Harry Pearson) and his wife and child, [...]
Source: Kim Bah Lee
Tomorrow is my birthday. I’ll be twenty-nine years old. Mrs K has intimated at the *mother* of all presents, but that won’t be here until Christmas, all things being well. But I can’t wait that long to be showered with gifts. Here’s what I want: Netherland by Joseph O’Neill The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the [...]
Source: Kim Bah Lee
Dali’s gone to the dogs. Proof that it’s not just the Maltese media who can’t always match photos with articles. This gem from today’s Times: The article says “Ecumenical Council by Salvador Dali, is inspected by Tim McKew, right, at an exhibition of the Spanish artist …”
Redemption Blues
Redemption Blues
Source: Redemption Blues
When an architect is so swept away by the splendour of his own vision and the grandeur of his plans, so utterly convinced of his own genius the needs of the users might seem to him nothing more than the petty gripes of lesser mortals whose imaginations are enslaved by their addiction to trivial comforts. [...]
Source: Redemption Blues
Welcome to the pre-hibernation edition of the Britblog Roundup where blogging activity appears to have succumbed to seasonal sluggishness in the absence of major scandals. Politics Writing at Pajamas Media, Andrew Ian Dodge weighs up the Tory leader’s prospects of success at next year’s election in David Cameron Likely Britain’s Next PM, But He May Yet [...]
Source: Redemption Blues
In many respects, ex-patriate exile resembles a form of self-delusion. For many years, I would not entertain the thought of buying rather than renting, as to commit myself to a mortgage would be tantamount to acknowledging that my stay was anything other than temporary. Some places lend themselves to cocooning yourself in denial more easily [...]
Source: Redemption Blues
[15th August 2009] We were all feeling despondent at the news of Wayne’s suicide. Such a gentle man, the only hint of violence directed against himself at the end. Gathered in the living room, Mattie attempted to relieve the tension by distracting us with anecdotes. Amongst his numerous past jobs, he spent a long stint working [...]
Source: Redemption Blues
[13th August 2009] At the cottage, the approach of the weekend is betrayed by two tell-tale signs: the level of the loch and the sprouting of tents on the opposite shore like noxious fungi. The former attributable to anticipated peaks in electricity consumption, as the water drives the turbines in the power station and is artificially [...]
Source: Redemption Blues
On the slopes of Creag an Lochain (at conk-out point) we came across this attractive amphibian We spotted this slightly less colourful cousin by the path leading across Rannoch Moor to Glencoe But in terms of sheer immensity, what could beat the Rannoch Frog Stone?
Source: Redemption Blues
From the urgency with which my son passed on the message to contact him immediately, I knew my brother’s news could only be bad. Death swooping down from a clear sky without so much as a wingbeat to alert its unsuspecting prey. The unmistakeable tremble in the voice. We had just finished a three-course late [...]
Source: Redemption Blues
Welcome to the 231st edition of the Britblog Roundup. Forgive the uncharacteristic terseness of my introduction, but I have reached an advanced stage of sleep deprivation induced by the relentless onslaught of dust particles on my lungs and the consequent impossibility of drawing breath with ease whilst reclining. Blogging It is quite gratifying that for once [...]
Source: Redemption Blues
In Hungary, the European Parliament election campaign is in full swing.
Source: Redemption Blues
Welcome to the 218th edition of the Britblog Roundup where in a nightmare vision, speakers blare the incessant admonition of our Wise and Glorious Leaders to: “Keep young and beautiful, It’s your duty to be beautiful; Keep young and beautiful If you want to be loved. Don’t fail to do your stuff With a little powder and a puff, Keep young and [...]
Bruxello Blogando
Bruxello Blogando
Source: Bruxello Blogando
Believe it or not, despite the way it impinges on our skyline, it’s illegal to use photos of the Atomium without permission, and the payment of some royalties to the owners of the rights to the image of the big shiny balls.
Well fuck that, quite frankly. They didn’t ask my permission to put it [...]
Source: Bruxello Blogando
The tram stop De Wand, not far from Heizel, was last year given over entirely to graffiti artists. Not taggers, who have no art in them, but proper graffiti artists. It’s a huge panorama of, on the one side, techy sort of sci-fi stuff, and on the other, a monster Japanese manga-ish look.
More here.
[...]
Source: Bruxello Blogando
Spotted on Meiserplein:
complete with thermostat. It’s actually an elaborate tarpaulin advertising hoarding.
The label reads: “Good isolation prevents you heating for everyone”.
Eye-catching, and a worthy message. But how will it affect the accident rate at the notorious Meiser?
Source: Bruxello Blogando
I only had seconds to snap this car pulling away from outside the house.
It’s a real company.
Source: Bruxello Blogando
… about Groot-Bijgaarden:
His field is right by the tram terminus, with the motorway going overhead a little way off. It may be the windiest spot on earth. G-B is a shithole, but at least I only have to go there twice a week. And I don’t have to stand in a field.
[...]
Source: Bruxello Blogando
Found in a shop in Evere:
Yes, it does say what you think it says:
Source: Bruxello Blogando
This week’s Flanders Today will include a review I wrote of an exhibition currently running at Bozar, Reality as Ruin. The page features a rather lovely, ethereal photo (from 1853) of some guys hanging about inside the Acropolis. Here are a couple of photos we couldn’t find space for, also from the exhibition.
Photos by Louis-Joseph [...]
The Belgian Years
The Belgian Years
Source: The Belgian Years
Dan and I were watching some sort of marine corps survival training course on TV the other day (hey, we are at the mercy of Belgacom, what can I say?), when it hit me -- my time in Belgium has been a two-year long boot camp on how to survive on public transportation!
At the risk of pissing in the proverbial wind, I swear I feel that there is nothing that I am not prepared for when it comes to PT. Drive your car into a tram? Got you covered. Have a very large old lady fall into your lap where you have to grope her breasts in order to push her off of you? Can teach that course. Man craps his pants in seat across from you? Passed it with flying colors. Stuck between a glass partition and a "hard spot"? Been there, felt that. Dyslexic cab drivers? Ckech. Crazy lady dropping trou? Roger that. Cabbies that offer post-ride massages? PT101. How to drive a bus driver into a homicidal rage? Magna cum laude, baby!
So, on Tuesday afternoon when the driver of Tram 25 stopped the tram in the middle of the road and got out with a long metal stick, I wasn't the least bit concerned. I figured he was probably just trying to figure out the best way to dislodge the body. No big deal for a PT survivalist like myself. A couple of minutes of poking and prodding, and the driver got back on the tram and we started on our merry way. But I, the hardened, seasoned public transport professional that I am, knew that there was much more to this ordeal. I could tell by the tiny hairs standing up on the back of my neck. (Rookies, lesson one in PT survival training -- learn to listen to those hairs. It could very well save your life one day, or at least become a bloggable event. You heard it here.)
The tram rambled on until it came to the next stop. Although I had never been in this area of Brussels, nor had I ever been on this particular tramline, I knew that the stop was "Buyl" because, like a good survivalist, I am always aware of my surroundings (and escape routes) while using PT. As the driver pulled into the stop, he made the announcement over the loudspeaker. I didn't need French or context clues to know what was going on. While others showed their irritation by rolling their eyes and grumbling, I just laughed. I was in an unfamiliar area, pressed for time. Of course we were being kicked off the tram.
So, as I stood on the side of the tram tracks waiting for god-knows-how-long for the next tram to arrive so I could join the masses in shoving my way onto what was sure to be an already packed tram, I couldn't help but pride myself in just how far I've come in PT survival. There was a time when I would have been the only person that didn't get off the tram, riding it back to wherever it was being sent for repair, with the driver sneaking peaks at me in his rearview mirror, wondering what was going on with the crazy chick?
Hoorah!
Source: The Belgian Years
This weekend we found an "invitation" in our mailbox. Looks like our presence is requested at our local police station. Maybe the staff had such a good time when we were down there 2 months ago that they just had to invite us back. We're fun that way.
Dan is convinced that they just lost a form or something while processing my residency card renewal and they want a do-over. I, on the other hand, don't share his optimism. Maybe it's because I've been down this road one and half times before. I'll let you know where I end up.
Source: The Belgian Years
On my way to the tram this morning (yes, I realize that this is entirely inconsistent with my swearing off of public transportation in yesterday's post, but, the reality is that my pro-bono job does not afford me the luxury of taking a cab to and from the office every day!), this rather large, clean-cut, and relatively nicely-dressed man approached me from the opposite direction and stopped directly in front of me. He then started talking to me in French.
A little irritated that he was blocking my forward progression, but still well within the realms of good global citizen, I threw out my best "Je suis desolee. Je ne parle pas Francais. Sorry." I then tried to sidestep him to the left. He grabbed my right arm and asked, "English?" Since my purse was on the other arm, I didn’t figure him for a robber. Great, that left me with rapist! Of course, internally, I'm freaking out, but, on the outside, I’m the picture of cool, calm and collected. I yanked my arm back and replied, “yes,” while still trying to get around him.
He then asked, in English, if I knew where Place de Kambi (sp?) was. I told him no, I had never heard of it. Again, I tried to skirt past him. Again, he blocked my path. He said that he really needed to find Place Kambi. I told him that if he could give me a restaurant or a hotel near the Place, maybe I could help him, but, otherwise, I really had no idea where Place de Kambi was.
He then asked me if I was from England. “No,” I said. At this point, I had managed to get past him, but, to my chagrin, he started walking backwards next to me. With a death-grip on my purse, I tried to put as much distance – both forwardly and laterally – from the man as possible. Right about then, I started thinking that maybe the guy was never looking for Place de Kambi and that, perhaps, he was just looking for a reason to approach me. I started to get a little weirded out.
Not to be deterred by my curt response and fancy side-stepping, he then asked me if I was an American. “Yes,” I said, “I’m from the States.” This is where what would have otherwise been just another uncomfortable encounter on a Brussels street for Cindy turned into a bloggable event. He started pointing at me and yelling, “You are the daughter of George W. Bush! You are the daughter of George W. Bush!” Needless to say, it caught people's attention.
Now, I’ve purposely tried to keep this blog non-political, as I’m sure that there are plenty who don’t share my views, nor would they care to read my rants (except, for maybe my Daddy and my Aunt Pat who most certainly share my rant-slant), but, c’mon, them’s fighting words! The way I figured it, W's approval rating in the States is hovering around 30%, give or take a few evangelicals. All things being equal, I think it is fair to say that public opinion of him in Europe is much, much, much, much lower. And this lunatic (the guy on the street, in case you are confused as to which one I'm referring) is accusing me of being related to him (the other lunatic, in case you are confused as to which one I'm referring)!
Granted, I was tempted to stop and defend my honor, but, if anything, I'm learning not to engage the crazies. So, I just kept walking. I did, however, do that little waving motion next to my head that the French do that looks like you are screwing in a light bulb (for the longest time I thought it was just nice people waving at me until someone clued me in that it was actually French hand signals for "that beyatch be crazy!") Apparently, this particular hand signal is gender-neutral. Good to know, good to know.
Source: The Belgian Years
I. Hate. Public. Transportation. There, I said it. How very politically incorrect of me, especially in the non-green sort of way. This morning, I vowed to never again take the metro in Brussels. Or, at the very least, never sit in one of the seats again.
I would like to take you all back to the blog posting, Mind the Crack, where I posted about the crazy lady that got off the metro in front of me and immediately dropped trou and used the bathroom. Looking back, I guess I should have given her props for at least waiting to until she got off the metro to do her business.
This morning, I picked up the 1B line in the direction of Stockell. Somewhere between Gare Central and Arts-Loi, the guy sitting across from me literally shit his pants. I'm not sure if it was voluntary or otherwise, but, he definitely experienced a bowel movement, whether you attribute it to irritable bowel syndrome, spastic colon, fecal incontinence, anal leakage, or whatever. Trust me, from where I was sitting, I was more concerned with the effect rather than the cause.
Needless to say, those of us in the immediate vicinity of the guy cleared out like cockroaches in a tenement housing when the lights go on. (Okay, so, technically, I've never actually seen cockroaches in tenement housing, or, for that matter, even been inside a tenement house, but, I've got cable and a vivid imagination.) Gagging, I made it to the back of the train, positioning myself as far away from Mr. Crappy Pants as possible. I kept staring at him, trying to find something that would have clued me in that this guy would evacuate his bowels on public transport. But, I had nothing. Not one single thing. From where I was standing, he looked absolutely normal, assuming, of course, you weren't looking at the brown stain on his jeans.
Source: The Belgian Years
Top 10 Things We Learned While Dan Was Hospitalized:
10. Time spent in the hospital is a lot like dog years.
9. The curtain dividing a shared hospital room does nothing to drown out the sounds coming from the patient in the other bed, be it snores or those sounds that naturally follow the administration of an enema. If your roommate does need an enema, chances are it will be given 30 minutes before dinner is served, pretty much ensuring that the guy will go to the toilet (that would be the portable one placed just on the other side of the dividing curtain!) while you are eating dinner.
8. Smells travel through curtains.
7. Whoever put the deposit in for the remote control gets to call the shots as to what will be watched on the only television in the room.
6. The Dutch game show, Blokken, can be quite entertaining, even if you have no idea what is being said.
5. When it comes time to place your order for the next day's dinner, don't opt for the "bologna." It is made from horse meat.
4. Job was a sissy! Apparently, lack of privacy, lack of sleep and lack of food is all that is needed to create the "perfect storm" conditions for Dan to turn into the devil!
3. I have no idea what they make, but nurses are underpaid. Way, way, way underpaid. (Along those same lines, quality health care does not have to cost a fortune! There is something to be said for socialized medicine.)
2. Dan makes a horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible patient.
1. We are so incredibly blessed to have such loving and supportive people in our lives. Thanks so much for all of the calls, the emails, the texts, the cards, the flowers and the prayers over the past couple of weeks. We could have not have gotten through this without you guys!
Source: The Belgian Years
Today is March 21st. It is the second day of spring, which I know for a fact to be true because of yesterday's Google doodle. Today, there was sun in Brussels. It was sandwiched between hail and snow. It is days like this that remind me just how far I have come since my rookie days in Brussels when I didn't know that you should never leave the house without a coat, gloves, umbrella and sunglasses.
Source: The Belgian Years
For 10 days in February, I was holed up on the Spanish coastline, chasing some sun. I figured with a name like "Costa del Sol", it would be a good place to start. Not so much. According to the concierge at the hotel, it was some of the worst weather he had seen in a long, long, long time. He was flat-out amazed at the amount of wind and rain pummeling the coastline. I, on the other hand, wasn't surprised at all.
One stormy day, I decided to head to Malaga to check out Picasso's birthplace and museum. One would think, given all my (mis)adventures on public transportation, that I would take a cab. One would be wrong. I opted for the M110, the local bus marked "Benalmadena to Malaga". The way I saw it, I spoke passable Spanish, the bus stop was directly in front of my hotel, and the museum was the last stop on the route. All things considered, what could possibly go wrong? Well, let me break it down for you.
I hopped on the bus with a big smile and a twenty euro note and asked the bus driver, "Malaga Centro?" I've found that this is really the best approach to take when you have absolutely no idea where you are going - ask the guy driving. In this case, he replied, and this is a direct quote, "si, but it is only 1 euro 25. Do you have anything smaller?" Yep, this was going to be a piece of cake.
Generally when travelling on public transportation in a foreign country, I try to get the seat closest to the driver. In this case, I snagged an aisle seat, front row, right side of the bus. I considered it a win-win situation. Chances were pretty good that no one would want to crawl over me to get to the window seat; I could see the driver, and, more importantly, the driver could see me, which meant that the odds of him telling me which stop to get off were leaning heavily in my favor.
The bus driver was, by far, the happiest guy I have seen working in a public sector industry. Absolutely nothing phased this driver -- not the traffic, not the weather, not the old Brits (which, by the way, from what I can see, make up almost the entire population from Benalmadena to Torremolinos) who held the bus up while they were digging for their fare or bus passes, not the road construction, which was B-A-D bad. I even caught him humming a time or two.
Well, just as I had anticipated, when we reached the last stop at the Malaga bus station, the Happy Driver turned around and said, "this is you." Muchas gracias, senor! I hopped off the bus and immediately decided that it was not the day to see Malaga. The rain had picked up, the wind was raging and, quite frankly, I did not want to deal with the weather hassle, let alone sacrifice one of my new umbrellas.
So, decision made, I jumped on another bus, this one marked "Malaga to Benalmadena." As before, I approached the bus driver, this time with 1.25 on the ready, and asked for a "billette." Unlike before, I did not get a ticket. Instead, I got what would probably be best described as a Spanish verbal smackdown. Tapping deep into my Tex-Mex Tijuana Spanglish, I was able to discern that, apparently, when boarding a bus in Spain at the station, one needs to purchase a ticket at the booth and not on the bus. Good to know. But, I also learned that if one keeps pushing the buck 25 back at the driver, and the line starts to seriously back up, the driver will, eventually, take one's money. Pick your battles, people, that's all I'm saying.
As before, I took the seat on the first row, on the aisle, door-side of the bus. Even though there was no chance in hell that this particular driver was going to give me the heads-up on my get-off stop, old habits are hard to break. I settled in and watched as the bus started to fill up.
It was obvious that this driver did not enjoy anywhere near the job satisfaction as his colleague, nor did he share his same sunny disposition. He rarely acknowledged anyone, unless you consider "rapido" a greeting. He cut people off in traffic; he yelled at other drivers through his window; he cursed when he didn't make the traffic light. Basically, he was just an all-around nasty man.
As more and more people got on the bus, I got to feeling a little guilty about blocking the window seat. I decided that if an old person got on the bus carrying something heavy, I would slide over. That was my deal -- old and carrying something heavy.
I don't know who tipped the devil off to my internal bargain, but, sure enough, a couple of stops later, this old man got on the bus, literally dragging a huge green duffel bag. Curses! I slid over. Since the duffel bag would have blocked the aisle, the man wanted it on his lap. Being the good global citizen that I am (okay, to make myself feel better about hogging the seat), I leaned over and helped him put his bag on his lap. I also slid as far to the right as I possibly could, crossing my legs to give him even more room, which meant my knees were now smashed up against the side of the bus. Small price to pay to ease the guilt.
As the bus navigated through the various pothole-ridden roads and construction zones, a pattern emerged. The bell would ring, the driver would look in his big center mirror (with a very irritated look on his face), the bus would pull over at the next stop, and people would get off. It was Pavlovian beautiful.
We left the city center and entered the motorway, where the bus picked up cruising speed. Now, I don't know why there are bus stops on the Spanish motorway, but, there are -- lots of them. As before, the bell rang and the driver, looking irritated, pulled over at the next stop. But, unlike in the city center, this time, no one got off. The driver, looking even more irritated (which I didn't think was humanly possible), waited for a break in traffic and then merged back onto the motorway and started picking up speed.
We jostled down the road for a couple of more minutes and then, brring, brring. The driver once again pulled out of traffic and stopped at the next stop. Once again, no one got off. The driver glared at us from his center mirror and shouted something in Spanish, which I didn't catch, but, from the look on the faces of the people around me, it must have been a real gem.
Just as the bus was accelerating to merge left back into traffic, brring, brring, brring, brring, brring. At this point, the driver is not watching the road - at all. His eyes are fixed on the center mirror, trying to catch whoever it is pushing the button. The rest of us on the bus are looking around trying to do the same thing. Personally, I had my money on the young guy with the cammo jeans and the white jacket with the Ipod wires dangling from his ears. He just looked way too nonchalant, in a very cocky sort of way. If anyone was going to kick Cujo, it'd be him.
We had gone about a mile or two before the bell went off again. The driver pulled over. No one got off. At this point, the driver was well on his way to a ruptured aneurysm. Part of me admired anyone with the cajones to jack with this guy, but another part of me was mortified that he was going to make all of us pay - dearly. From where I was sitting, we were one gun shy of a CNN reported incident.
By now, it is getting pretty damn uncomfortable on the bus, largely because of the maniacal way the driver kept glaring at us from his rearview mirror. He had stopped cursing several stops ago, and, quite frankly, I found his steely silence even more disturbing. The old guy seated beside me started shifting in his seat, moving closer to me, in, what I presumed to be, an attempt to dodge the driver's direct line of sight. I, too, did not want to risk making eye contact with the driver, so I looked down at my lap. And, that's when I saw it. The little red thing. The little red thing that my knees touched every time I moved. The little red thing that goes brring, brring, brring!
I've only experienced paralyzing, mind-numbing fear a couple of times in my life and this was one of them. Fortunately, survival skills kicked in. I knew I had to get off the bus, immediately, but I couldn't exactly push the little red button now, could I? Instead, I jumped up and yelled "proxima por favor", "proxima."
The bus driver pulled over. I got out. I walked the last two miles to the hotel, in the pouring rain, without an umbrella, singing to myself, "the bells on the bus go brring, brring, brring," and thinking about winning the battle, but losing the war.
Source: The Belgian Years
My brand-spanking new Treo 750 smartphone has gone the way of my wallet. (I'm really starting to take this personally!) Fortunately for me, the person who took it was kind enough to leave me my credit cards, my ATM card, and my driver's license, all of which I had been keeping in my phone case because I was without a wallet. (The credit cards were turned in to the reception at the hotel as being "found" in a corridor -- no word on how they got out of the phone case or where the phone was at!) Now, I am reduced to using an envelope from the Torrequebrada Hotel in Costa del Sol, Spain, with a big piece of tape on the back, as a wallet. Tres trendy!
Source: The Belgian Years
My wallet is gone. Not gone as in "lost" or "misplaced", gone as in "stolen."
I hope that whoever took it did not just abandon it in a trash can somewhere near the metro station. No, I sincerely hope that they are enjoying running their fingers over the well-worn leather, smooth and supple after years of use.
I hope they recognize that this wallet is not only a designer wallet, but it is "vintage", as it is over 15 years old and no longer available for purchase.
I hope that they are going through all the plastic cards, wondering what in the hell is a "pets perk" card.
I hope that they are looking at the pictures of my nephews and are commenting on how adorable they are.
I hope that they take the measly 80 some-odd euros that I had in it and buy themselves something special. Or, ever better, treat someone they love to lunch or a cocktail.
I hope that they go to Paris and get some use out of the Paris metro tickets stored behind my organ donor card.
I hope that no one ever takes this wallet away from them!
Source: The Belgian Years
If you've ever ridden the London tube (that's the metro or subway for all us non-Brits), you have probably seen the sign above the door that reads "Mind the Gap." Again, for the non-Brits, that translates, roughly, to "Watch Your Step."
Last week, Joni and Jason, some friends of ours from SoCal, along with their 10-month old daughter, came to visit us in Brussels via London. We made plans to meet some of my friends for lunch near Schuman, so I suggested we take the metro. Seriously, what kind of tour guide would I be without exposing my guests to the workings and smells of the underground? Besides, I wanted them to experience just how different Brussels' underground was compared to London's.
For reasons not important to this story, we got on the metro at the Gare du Midi, which meant that we had to change lines at Arts Loi and then we would have only two stops before our destination. All things considered, and by that, I mean, given that we were riding the subway and Jason was carrying his daughter in some sort of contraption on his back that protruded out a good foot and a half and he had yet to cold-cock someone while turning, we had a pretty smooth experience -- until Joni smelled smoke.
When we got on the new line at Arts Loi, Joni looked at me and asked, "Can you smoke in here?" I looked around and, sure enough, there was a woman, seated about 5 feet from where I was standing and, more importantly, seated directly next to the little sign indicating smoking is not allowed in the metro, thoroughly enjoying herself a cigarette.
The Smoking Lady saw me at about the same time I saw her. Rather good-naturedly, I wagged my finger at her in a "that's a no-no" sort of way, and BAM, cardinal rule violated. How many times have I said that you are never to engage the crazies? Well, let me tell you, finger-wagging at a crazy person is like a waving a red cape to a bull. I know this now. Do with it what you will.
Smoking lady started smiling in that raging psychotic nutjob sort of way, accentuated by tell-tale crazed serial killer eye rolls. And, it seemed, I had her undivided attention. She took a long pull on her cigarette and threw it down at her feet, still very much lit, in the poorly-ventilated train. Part of me knew, just knew, that nothing good was going to come of this. Call it want you want, mojo, intuition, experience, whatever, but I could just sense a bloggable event coming on.
As we approached the Schuman stop, I inched forward, gesturing for Joni and Jason to follow me, so that we would be ready to make a quick exit when the doors opened. Smoking Lady beat us to the punch. When the train stopped, Smoking Lady was in the middle of the train doorway, fidgeting with her skirt. I was trying to figure out the least intrusive way of reaching around her and pushing the little green button that would open the doors, when she hit the release button and solved my problems for me.
Since no one was waiting to board, I figured Smoking Lady would step off the train and head straight. My plan was to step off and make a quick right, hoping Joni and Jason would follow my lead.
Well, you know what they say about the plans of mice and men. Smoking Lady threw me a curve when she stepped straight off the train and then IMMEDIATELY hiked up her skirt and started using the bathroom! At this point, I am directly behind her, with one front on the metro and one foot on the platform, caught between the soon to be closing metro doors and her bare ass, trying not to stumble over her, or, worse, step into anything that came from her general direction.
Backing up was out of the question as I would have run into Joni, who would have run into Jason, who would rammed their baby into whoever was standing behind Jason. With the metro about to depart the station, I edged right and prayed that Joni and Jason would follow. If not, they were screwed, as they had never been in the metro before, did not have a cell phone on them, did not speak French or Flemish, and had no idea where we lived. Basically, your standard tourist nightmare if the guide decides to adopt a "you are on your own" mentality.
Miraculously, we all made it off the train without the baby getting caught between the closing doors and without tumbling over Smoking Lady. Once we were clear of the Smoking Lady, Joni looked at me, kind of dazed, and said, "You know, I always thought you were exaggerating in your blog about crazy things that happen to you over here, but not anymore."
Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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The world refers to them as French fries, although there is no population in the world that eats more of them and they are invented here, in this country. You spent all your money in chocolate stores and you’re running out of budget? Or you’re just looking for some quick and cheap snack? Try a [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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Alright, it’s Saturday evening and you’re going out with a group of friends, you are hungry and longing for great food…but no one thought about making a reservation… Only a couple of steps away from the Grand Place there is already a solution to your problem, in Tapas Locas you simply cannot make reservations at [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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There are many good Italian restaurants in Brussels, one that I can recommend in the city centre is Rugantino. Whether you are looking for a pizza, pasta, risotto or carne, Rugantino has it all.
But it’s not only the food that counts, the reason why I fancy this place is more than the food the setting [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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You’re hungry like a bear or eager to score a meat overdose? Head for the best rib thing in town, Amadeo.
To tell you a little secret, I personally don’t like spare ribs at all, but when asked to accompany friends or family to this charming all-you-can-eat ribplace I don’t have to hesitate a single second. [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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This place might NOT be the typical Greek restaurant with Corinthian pillars and dancing waiters, but it’s definitely one of my favorite spots to score a typical Greek dish when I’m in the Midi region. No fancy inside, this is taverna style Greece.
Go into the kitchen to check out for yourself what this day dishes [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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It’s quiet, it’s small, it’s hidden in between place Jourdan, the Parliament and rue Belliard. It has a pond, few nice buildings, a long history, a few paths to walk around it, benches to rest and nobody will complain if you lay down with your pic-nic basket (as long as you take your trash home!).
It [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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In Brussels you can find cafes on every corner. Typical, busy, smoky, good or bad: you have plenty of choice!
However only few serve something local, something typically Bruxelloise. One of them is “Het Warme Water”, near Place du Jeu de Balle in Marolles.
They have a few wooden tables, some old pictures, and an interesting menu. Breakfasts, [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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Going to the hammam is not part of my culture, but I like to explore. So when a friend proposed me to check out the Brussels one, I immediately accepted. Saturday lunch time, lots of women, lots of kids, a smile to welcome you, uhm I like this place.
And here I am, with my ticket [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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Another one of those typical places (and it’s vegetarian!) which are always pretty packed because the food they serve is very very good!
The list of quiches is never-ending and they are always served with salad and bread. If you can’t decide which one to eat, just go by the counter and check them out. Just [...]
Source: Brussels (Belgium) Local To Do Tips | Spotted by Locals blogs
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I’m always surprised to discover that Brussels has hundreds of small parks, hidden behind buildings, or around the corner of a busy street. Even locals do not know them, as the entrance is often a small door, with an opening timetable posted on it.
The other day I see a gate and a sign “Parc Public, entree [...]
Life in and around Brussels...
Life in and around Brussels...
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
Let’s be honest, we don’t live in Brussels because of the nice weather, the charm of the city, the customer-centered attitude, or the local warmth… but the food here, that’s a different story… where else could one eat at amazing, Michelin-starred restaurants for less than 35 euros??
The catch: you have to go for lunch during [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
So, the new Restopass is out. (Read earlier post on Restopass and how it works.) The restaurant selection has not changed significantly, although a few good locations have been dropped (Le Fruit Defendu, Museum Brasserie… probably because the 30% discount on these was too good of a deal!)
A couple other differences: the list has 40 [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
UPDATE: Apparently Arirang is now closed. No indication of whether this is permanent or not. (February 2010)
In the past few days, people have been visiting this blog searching for Korean restaurants in Brussels, specifically in the Saint Boniface area. Indeed, there is a Japanese-Korean restaurant called Hana, which is on Rue Saint Boniface 21 (tel: [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
Cospaia is a fairly large, trendy restaurant (for Brussels standards) located between Porte de Namur and Louise, off a small street called Rue Capitain Crespel, which is next to the esplanade between the two.
This is one of the many restaurants that is part of the Restopass 30% off offer. Overall, I would go to try [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
Le Fruit Defendu is great find not far from the Chatelain area!
This small restaurant only has about a dozen tables, so you will need to book well in advance, especially on weekends. I had to try several times before I finally made it there, but it was well worth it and it has been one [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
For those of you looking for a last-minute “cultural” plan for tomorrow night (Saturday, November 7), here is an idea:
EUR 10 for a concert version of the opera Don Pasquale, conducted by maestro Ricardo Muti.
Might be a bit far of a drive just for a concert if you are in Brussels, but if you are [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
I’m a bit late with the announcement this year, but the Thursday evening museum openings (a.k.a. Nocturnes) are back.
The ticket price has increased a bit but remains very reasonable at EUR 2.50 (or just one euro if you are under 25).
The list of participating museums has not changed much from previous years and no, the [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
Once again, we’ll be changing time to winter time next week, on Sunday, 25 October.
What does it mean? In the morning from Saturday to Sunday night, at 3am you will have to change your clocks and watches back to 2am.
To remember: not all countries end daylight savings time the same weekend, so if you are [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
Cosi is one of the 30 restaurants included in the 30% discount booklet Restopass, located in the popular Chatelain neighborhood and thus, subject to a lot of tough competition since the area is full of fairly decent eateries.
The lowdown: Ok meal but not spectacular. You can do better for the same price in Brussels but [...]
Source: Life in and around Brussels...
Everyone has heard about Comme Chez Soi with its exorbitant prices, and sometimes not that cozy ambiance…
But not many people know about the Bistrot du Mail, which has one Michelin star less (but still, great credentials – one star is not bad at all…) but offers weekday lunch menus for EUR 25 to EUR 29 [...]
Unintentional Housewife
Unintentional Housewife
Source: Unintentional Housewife
Our scene: a typical Belgian brasserie–lovely stained glass, art deco interiors, chalkboard announcing the day’s specials, a hungry lunch crowd. Please note that the following scene takes place entirely en français. English translation has been provided. Our actors: Mindi, her fabulous friend and a waitress. Aaaaaaand, Action! Waitress: ”Tell me.” (translation: Hi, may I take your [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
Bonjour, tout le monde! I seem to be accomplishing one post per month (and October is almost up), Dan said he would take my blog away from me if I didn’t use it, and I think I’m addicted to procrastinating (I may need an intervention), so time to write an update! Cyclocross season has begun! We primarily [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
Today is Dan’s 30th birthday, hooray! Happy Birthday! My mom lovingly asked me if I was a cougar since I am the older woman (by 1 year). No, but thanks for placing me in the company of such luminaries as Ivana Trump and Joan Collins, mom. Anyhoo, I made Dan’s favorite childhood cake, a molasses-spice-coffee [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
Salut from sunny Brussels–noteworthy because a) Belgium is known for rain, rain, beer, chocolate, rain and a peeing boy and b) it is 9pm and the sun will be out for at least another 1 1/2 hours. The sun rises here around 5:30 am and sets around 10:30 pm, awesome for evening bike rides for [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
My apologies for the seriously pitiful lack of updates. It’s been super busy ’round these parts the past couple months–my brother Sam and his fiancée Libby, my mother, and Dan’s sister Kara have all been here for visits; Dan went to Finland; and we’ve been to Germany, the Netherlands, France and to 8 states and 3 graduations [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
Do you want the good news or the bad news first? I’ll start with the good–spring is definitely coming to Belgium! How do I know this? The bad–I am apparently allergic to Belgium. Time to fill the prescription for the hard core allergy medication, the over-the-counter stuff ain’t cutting it anymore. But, flowers are coming [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
One of my goals for this moving to Europe business was to become a better cook. I knew I would have a lot more time on my hands (the upside of the whole not really being employed thing), and I wanted to take advantage of it. I never really cooked until I met Dan. I [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
Dan and I have been living in Brussels for over 6 months now, so I think it’s time for a list of random things we’ve learned about living here. 1. The official languages of Belgium are French, Dutch and German (which is only spoken in a small corner of Belgium). But the country is culturally and [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
Bonjour from beautiful Brussels! Friday it was 50 degrees, sunny, and breezy. Not that I’m rubbing it in. I can’t help but think about the weather in our former home, Portsmouth, NH, where it was probably 20 degrees with 2 feet of snow on the ground. Sorry New Hampshire, Belgium wins! Ok, now I’m rubbing [...]
Source: Unintentional Housewife
Today is my little brother’s golden birthday–he’s turning 26 on the 26th–happy birthday Sam! If he ever decides to start a blog, I’m sure he could fill it with horror stories about me as a big sister (hey Sam–remember when I used to sit on you? That was fun! Or, remember the time I bowled [...]
Brussels Sprout
Brussels Sprout
Source: Brussels Sprout
At a reader's recommendation (many moons ago), I finally got my act together and made it to Les Feux de Bengale, an Indian restaurant in the neighborhood of the Grand Place. I'm skeptical of many restaurants in that area, as I've found that many offer mediocre, overpriced food, but a recommendation is worth a lot in my book.
Source: Brussels Sprout
I really thought I knew every vegetarian restaurant in Brussels - at the very least, I thought I'd heard of them all. Then a few nights ago, a friend and I were looking for a dinner that wouldn't break the bank, and sure enough, there was Mr. Falafel.
Source: Brussels Sprout
Source: Brussels Sprout
Evan, the very nice man who produced the "My Brussels" segment about me and this blog on TV Brussel, mentioned to me that he's always looking for interesting people to profile for the show.
Source: Brussels Sprout
Bazaar has been on my list for ages - since I was last there, actually. I visited the nightclub half of Bazaar on a Saturday night shortly after moving here. For some reason we ran upstairs to see the restaurant, which was packed with people and looked swank and crazy and I couldn't wait to go back (see photo). It only took me 5 years.
Source: Brussels Sprout
Turns out I have readers in high places! Two weeks ago, I was contacted by someone who works for TV Brussel. He has been reading this blog, and thought I sounded interesting enough to be on television - at least for two minutes.
Which is how Brussels International, a weekly show on TV Brussel, ended up doing a short segment about me this past Sunday, January 31. It’s focused on my “expat experience” and this blog - how great is that?
I think it's kind of funny that the segment has been called "Tips on Kosher Eating from Sharon Light", but what can you do?
Source: Brussels Sprout
It was time for a dinner five years in the making: L’Atelier de la Truffe Noire. After strong recommendations by a friend when I first moved to Belgium, I promised my then-boyfriend that when I finally nailed down a job, I would treat him to a meal at this Avenue Louise establishment.
Source: Brussels Sprout
Al Barmaki has been on my list for a long time. It's got a pretty good rep on the blogs, and it's mentioned in the Michelin guide. The latter may also relate to the one recurring complaint: it's overpriced. And to some extent, it is. But the food is also delicious and when you're paying for real estate a couple of blocks from the Grand Place, you have to pay a certain price for quality.
A vegetarian can eat well at Al Barmaki, but only the mezzes. You have to order a minimum of three per person, which is also just about the right size for one person. The server also offered to make up a mixed platter for us, even vegetarian, but I was wary of what the bill might look like so we ordered six dishes of our own choosing.
The menu just gives the names of the dishes, no explanation, but the server was happy to answer questions. Our six dishes were:
- Hommos: this had a significant smokey flavor that surprised me but was quite nice. If you want it with tehina, that's a separate dish; we passed on that.
- Tomato and cucumber salad: ample and delish, done up with a fresh, light dressing. As good as it was, I have a hard time justifying 7 euros for it.
- Cheese in pastry: another winner. The pastry dough was thicker than I expected; the cheese was soft and mixed with herbs. Yum.
- Labne: there was much debate between this dish and another mezze of yogurt with garlic. With 20/20 hindsight, I think we should have tried the yogurt - the labne was thick and creamy but I've had better.
- Fried eggplants and cauliflower: I envisioned fritters made of both items, but this was actually just the vegetables, fried up. The eggplant was exceptional. The cauliflower was a little boring.
- Falafel: another success. Crispy, good size falafel balls, and we had unconsciously ordered all the fixin's.
All this was served with thin, soft bread (I was corrected for calling it pita), and we got a bowlful of tasty black olives (and I'm normally not a fan of black olives) and pickled peppers. Service was mediocre by Belgian standards, and although the setting isn't particularly swanky, it would definitely make for a good date location.
Plus the place gets bonus points for the table seated right next to us: five older gentlemen who looked Lebanese and also looked like they ate there at least twice a week. That's the best vote of confidence any restaurant can ask for.
Split down the middle, the bill came to just over 25 eur for each of us, including drinks, which might be a bit on the steep side but isn't outrageous. In my never-ending quest for quality food in the area of the Bourse, I think I can safely add Al Barmaki to my list.
Al Barmaki
67, rue des Eperonniers
1000 Brussels
Tel. 02 513 08 34
Open from 19h to midnight, Mon-Sat
Reservations recommended.
http://www.albarmaki.be
Source: Brussels Sprout
On several occasions, a colleague has recommended Tom Yam to me. Never one to turn down Thai, last night I rounded up a few friends to check it out and it is indeed a yummy stop-off.
I'm always a bit overwhelmed by the Asian options in the ULB area, so being pointed to one particular place was welcome. The restaurant is cozy and just about every seat was full - always a good sign.
Tom Yam indulges vegetarians by putting a "V" next to the vegetarian items on their menu. Fantastic. So was the food. Gidon and I split two starters: one was a couple of loempia plus a couple of fried aubergine patties. I was only expecting the loempia so the aubergines were a nice surprise and had a creamy and subtle flavor; I would have been happy with even a plate of those alone. The vegetarian loempia weren't out-of-this-world amazing but they were certainly adequate. The other starter was an "exotic salad": julienned vegetables in a sweet-and-sour sauce with chopped peanuts. This just about qualified as out-of-this-world amazing.
For mains, Gidon had a basic wok with tofu and vegetables. The sauce was also on the sweet side; pleasant but again, not special. I opted for a slightly spicy yellow-curry-with-vegetables dish. It was indeed mildly spiced, not overpowering, and was cooked in a base of coconut milk, which is always a winning combo for me. Our friends were not veggie but all seemed very pleased with their dishes - a chicken dish in a honey-and-sesame sauce (reportedly not too sweet), and some curries of varying spiciness (one warranted a three-pepper rating on the menu, which greatly pleased my spice-addicted friend).
As cute as the surroundings are, Tom Yam is also available for take-away or delivery if you prefer a quiet night at home, avoiding the cold and snow of late - totally understandable. Either way, get your hands on some of this tasty fare.
Tom Yam
Chaussée de Boondael 341
1050 Ixelles
Tel. 02 646 50 13
http://www.tomyam.be
Closed Sat & Sun lunches. Reservations recommended.
Source: Brussels Sprout
Shame on me for hiding Lilicup from you! I covered Lilicup for Flanders Today back in May - when they were just two ladies baking cupcakes to order out of their home kitchen. At the time, they were looking to open their own cupcake shop, and I was thrilled to hear that they have finally managed it.
Cupcakes exploded in New York City a few years ago, partly thanks for a single "Sex and the City" episode. The fad was crept it's way around the globe and has now reached Brussels. But you won't exactly find a New York cupcake at Lilicup. The baking mistresses have adapted their cupcake recipes to a European palate - meaning a little smaller, a little less sweet. In my opinion, equally yummy.
These little delicacies come in a wide variety of flavors, and if you need a special flavor arranged, just talk to the owners. They use organic and natural ingredients whenever possible and the results are outstanding. You'll find typical flavors, like vanilla and chocolate, but also combinations like chocolate-orange or the almond-lemon cake with a raspberry buried inside. Of course there is a equally wide selection of frostings. Admittedly, these are not a cheap indulgence, but they are oh-so-worth it.
You can pop in the store for a quick sweet treat (they also offer brownies, cookies and more which I'm sure are excellent but that's not really the point, now is it?) but for take-away orders, call them 48 hours ahead. What a great way to celebrate a special occasion, add a romantic touch to a homemade meal, or treat your friends to a slightly unusual dessert.
Lilicup
65 rue du Page
1050 Brussels
Tel. 02 538 02 68
http://www.lilicup.com/
Open Tues-Fri from 10h-17h, and Sat from 10h-18h
VeganCowGirl
VeganCowGirl
Source: VeganCowGirl
I am tucked into our bedroom, with Kevin and Aodhan's laughter keeping me company from the other room. This soundtrack to my writing underlines my need to shift blogging gears. I admit that the minutes I steal, when Aodhan has fallen asleep next to me in our family bed, are spent reading blogs about Attachment Parenting, Extended Breastfeeding and how to be a Crunchier Mommy. It isn't that I don't terribly miss Jessy's great bread recipes or reading about Liz's Montreal vegan adventures. I do, I do. It is just that there are only so many compartments in this mama's head and only so many seconds (yes, seconds, not minutes or hours) that I can borrow from Aodhan's needs to satisfy my reading pleasure.
I am ready to move on. I am ready to join the lactating sister wonderland and start writing about my own experiences as a full-on attached gentle mama, and the politics that I see whizing all around parenting.
I will miss blogging as a VeganCowGirl, but I plan to let a sparkle of her live on as I share the odd recipe on my new blog, where I will write about everything from how to get poop out of your cloth diapers to what it feels like to nurse through having a milk blister on the end of your nipple (for the fifth friggin' time).
I love the readers of VCG. You have been awesome and supported me through losing my family dog, finding out (with shock and some horror) about Aodhan. You have been great! And, of course, when I have time I will be reading and trying all of your recipes. This has been a great circle of writers and cooks to be a part of.
If you are interested in reading my new blog just drop me an email and I will be happy to share my new link.
Be well and veganny!
Lyndsay
Source: VeganCowGirl
Lyndsay: Hmmmm, I really have a craving for cake.
Kevin: What kind?
Lyndsay: Peanut Butter and Chocolate Brownie.
Kevin:
Source: VeganCowGirl
I am feeling a little saucy! Mostly because I can’t get enough of the apple sauce we keep making….I mean it. We keep making it. Every three days I run out and Kevin goes to one of the various local markets (ok, there are some things I love about Brussels), and picks up more local Belgian apples and away we go again.
It is so dead easy. Take 7 – 8 apples, core them, cut them into fours, and into the big pot they go. We add about two teaspoons of cinnamon and just enough water to stop it burning on the bottom (about 1/2 cup), and then we leave it alone for about 2 hours. Seriously – divine. No sugar, no nothing, just pure apple goodness.
I am also feeling a little saucy because I quit my job! Yes, yes, yes. I quit. I wasn’t really keen on the idea of going back to work after my year leave was up, even before Aodhan was born. But, now that he is here and we are full on with the Attachment Parenting, I can’t imagine not being with him through all the stages and changes that his childhood will bring him. Of course I am a privileged mamma who has that as an option and thank bejebus everyday for having a partner who supports this type of childcare and family love.
But the good stuff doesn’t stop there. I was thinking that even though I wouldn’t be returning to classroom, I still want to be busy and keep growing while I help mini-me grow. I was contemplating my PhD studies, I was thinking about a bunch of different things, but what really drew me was the idea of becoming a doula…and that is exactly what I have started to do. I am training through Childbirth International and I should be all trained up and ready to help babies come into the world by the time we make our next move (oh yah, we are hopefully moving….back to Canada!) in July. I really couldn’t be more excited…or sauced as the case may be
Source: VeganCowGirl
I know I should be doing something like cleaning up the kitchen (aka: bombsite), making creative flower arrangements with photos like the one I saw at playgroup yesterday that made me feel like a loser for not even having time to sort my socks from my undies, or, doing some reading about parenting that might have held a magical secret for dealing with my 7 month old who had a meltdown during our walk today that resulted in my pulling out my boob in the middle of the street in -4 degree weather. But no....instead, as Aodhan munches on his monkey, I am blogging! Yah!
I made a killer lunch today. Really raw avocado rolls. Not just raw veg, but raw EVERYTHING. These rice-free, protein packed sushi rolls were a perfect 'get me through the rest of the day until Kevin comes home' kind of snack. And, so much more easy to assemble then their rice filled brother.
Seriously - you have to make these. Go and do it right now. Go!
2 cups of raw sunflower seeds - soaked for 1 hour.
1 lime
2 sheets of nori
1 ripe avocado
I whirled up my seeds and lime in my food processor (much to Aodhan's horror), and then simply used this seedi-goodness in place of rice filler for my rolls. It took me all of two seconds to assemble the avocado rolls and about 2 minutes to down them! Num Num!
And...as you can see - they were fun for the whole family!
Source: VeganCowGirl
It all starts with that first Mother's Day breakfast you make. You know the one - Relish and Applesauce Pancakes or something equally revolting that your sleepy mother manages to ingest (or hide) because you are standing at the end of the bed smiling a sloppy smile. As foodies, many of us use our kitchen skills (wackiness), to show affection, love, and thanks. First date dinners, birthday cakes, get-well-soon soups, the list is endless, right?
Yesterday, I made a special batch of cookies for someone who I love very much. She is one of those special lights in the world. You know who I am talking about. They always have bandaids, they know what teas are good for a cold, their purses are likely to have just about anything in them that would help someone in need. These people are also often unaware of their seam bursting goodness and go about life doing good just because of who they are. I was lucky enough to have this person around me while I was pregnant, and she was pivotal in getting me through that time in a country other then my own while missing my own family in a huge way. She has stayed close to Aodhan and I and we are lucky to have visits with her about once a month. Lately there have been (and will be) some new babies born amoungst our community of international friends and she has been right there with these women - supporting, helping and loving. She is a super star and I just love her to bits.
Knowing that we were going to see her today, I made a new cookie so that I could pass some goodness onto someone who does so much for everyone around her. I made Ginger Spice Cookies. Now, these weren't Ginger Snaps - they were Ginger Cookies, retaining all the cookieness that seems to get lost for the sake of snappiness. I have to say, they were pretty darn good, and they should be considering all the love that was packed in them. I hope she is at home right now enjoying a cup of tea and a cookie or two. Here's to you Anne!
Ginger Cookies
(for Anne)
2 cups of whole wheat flour
1 tsp of baking soda
1 tsp of baking powder
1 cup of maple syrup
1/2 cup of olive oil
3 tbsp of freshly grated ginger
Mix dry ingredients in a bowl, add wet and stir until just mixed. I used a big soup spoon to capture a good chunk of the dough and then used my mitts to form little hockey puck sized patties. I baked at 350 for 17 minutes.
Aodhan turned 7 months today!!
Wishing everyone cookies and happiness for their weekend to come.
Source: VeganCowGirl
Good Morning!
Aodhan and I enjoyed a fantastic green smoothie this morning. Super simple combo of spinach, 1/2 a pear, banana and a tbsp of chia seeds. Double yum!
On Tuesday night I converted last month's Vegetarian Times' Shepherd's Pie into my own concoction and it was great! I loved it and will make it again for sure. Here is what I put in the pie this time around:
1 carrot
2 leeks
1 yellow onion
1 cup of white beans
4 yellow potatoes
2 parsnips
The topping was mega easy to make: dice up a couple of sweet potatoes and mash them to bits after they boil and add it to the top of the insides before tossing it in the oven. I baked it for about 40 minutes and enjoyed with some hot sauce. Num Num!
Source: VeganCowGirl
We had our usual Sunday Night Pizza Party last night. This was a special one though, because Aodhan got his very own mini pizza. He didn't seem to care too much about what was on his pizza, but was more interested in using the whole wheat crust to help his painful gums. It was a great meal, as usual made by Kevin. He is a pizza pro and spends the entire day getting his veg roasted to perfection before getting started on his dough. What a guy! We also made some really nice Apple Sauce yesterday, which I had for breakie this morning - much to Aodhan's delight.
Tonight's dessert, Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream, which followed a dinner of whole wheat pasta topped with the left over veg from last night, was in one word: heaven. My version of Wheeler's Pumpkin Ice Cream (from Vegan Scoop - great book), sent me into ice cream ecstacy - really. I have never tasted anything quite like it. Visually it looked like, well, baby poop. It smelled just like a pumpkin pie, and it was oh so tasty. Really, I can't recommend enough giving your ice cream maker the luxury of experiencing making this recipe. I could (and just might) eat it all night long.
Well, off to cuddle a feverish baby with hopes that his teeth come through this week and he can have a little relief before which ever milestone he is about to tackle next. Poor little vegan.
Source: VeganCowGirl
Howdy!
Aodhan and his dad are off to the shop, so I thought I would take a few seconds and give a quick update. The last week has been fantastic, despite teething and crankypants! Aodhan is managing enough non-mommy time that I can actually do things, like: make food, clean the house and shower. I admit it: I have a high-needs baby. He wants to be held all the time, he wants to be cuddled always, and he isn't the kind of baby you can lay down on the floor and let play on his own. But, I am not complaining. He is firmly attached to his mommy, and the theory is that this will help him build confidence and self-esteem. Plus, who would trade in all the cuddles and kisses?
But, it has been nice to see him managing himself a little more. I am so excited to be back in the kitchen at a capacity that goes beyond opening a tin of beans and heating up some potatoes. During the days this week, much in the way of the ACT cleanse, I have been raw. This decision is multi-purpose.
1. I was feeling a little sluggish and blah after all the traveling and visiting of the holidays and the raw goodness helps me feel a little more perky and more like myself.
2. Someone incredibly close to me is experiencing some difficult health barriers right now and having to give up most foodstuffs until tests etc can provide some conclusive answers to a pretty terrible set of symptoms. So, I thought I would stand next to them in a metaphorical way and treat my body with the same kind of love and care as she is currently practicing.
3. I always love having an excuse to make raw Date and Cashew Balls and gorge on them until the sun goes down.
Yum.
The evenings have been some good home cooking! Chickpea Stew, Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Carrots in Miso and Soya, Lentil Soup, and Bread!
I made two giant loaves last night of Herbey Whole Wheaty and they are divine. One is going to my bestie Kim, and the other is going to be gobbled up tonight with some Baked Tofu and Greens. I am also currently freezing some Chocolate Chip Coconut Ice Cream!!!
I am also cooking up another blog, one dedicated to my adventures in attachment parenting - there just isn't enough information out there about the benefits of what makes up attachment parenting, nor are there enough resources. I can't wait for it be ready for sharing!
Source: VeganCowGirl
It has been decades since my last post. But, no apologies. I am loving mommyhood too much to find the time needed to sink into my blogging. Plus, we have been busy! I do however, have to blog my sister's most amazing tribute to Aodhan's 6 month birthday.
Emily is a stellar cake/cupcake maker, but I wasn't prepared for just how talented she was when she turned Aodhan's favourite book, into the best 1/2 birthday treat EVER.
She used the chocolate cupcake recipe from VCTOTW and the rest was her own inspiration. She was also cool about taking out the sugar and using some maple syrup instead.....
Aodhan loved it. Ok....I LOVED IT!
We are currently enjoying the world of Baby Led Weaning, which involves letting your little make his own way into the world of food. Aodhan can't get enough of anything we offer, including Tofu 'Chicken' Curry Salad, cucumber, rice cakes, peanut butter, hummus - you name it, he'll eat it. He is still 100% a boob man, but I can see that the days will be numbered once he gets his teeth (still NOTHING!) and makes the synaptic connection between hungry belly, chewing and swallowing. Until then he is just enjoying food for the fun of it and learning all about the textures, tastes and smells.
Hope everyone had a very veganny holiday! Happy New Year!
Source: VeganCowGirl
Just a quickie because Kevin and I are enjoying Chinese Take Away!
Hope you are all mofoing it up vegan style!
Bite Me, Brussels.
Bite Me, Brussels.
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
I am a sushi fanatic. I adore it, and hate the price they charge in Belgium. Take me back to Paris Montparnasse… sigh
The Inari in the Parijsstraat in Leuven is fantastic, but that is a long way to go to satisfy my cravings, so Djazia and I loosened our belts and out wallets and set [...]
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
A friend and I have been looking for a good African restaurant in Brussels to replace Isimbi that moved out of Leuven. Kokob and the equally good House of Labilela (Leuven) are good Ethiopian places but we were looking for a more eclectic mix. An internet search revealed Horloge du Sud as a good place [...]
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
The regularly changing niche menu at Café des Spores may be a little pricey, but mushroom-lovers should gladly foot the bill once in a while. We tasted Belgian shitake mushrooms stuffed with beef and lined with wispy flakes of a dried fish (~14 euros), which for me was easily the best dish of the night. [...]
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
I just had my first Schievelavabo XXL burger with salad and fries (~11 euros) over at Place Jourdan, and given the location, atmosphere, price, quantity, and, of course, flavor, I’d say I just found a new burger joint in Brussels.
The thick double beef patties were stacked on top of each other, with a mustard sauce [...]
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
I call Karsmakers cosmopolitan. Foreigners frequent the place, which has an unusually large space to accommodate them, along with high ceilings and windows and bright lighting. Like other cosmopolitan places, the prices also can be slightly high (hot drinks ~3-4eu), but it may be worth it. Don’t expect a huge meal; just treat it as [...]
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
I suppose you can’t go wrong with this flavorful spread of chick peas. The herbs on top were a nice touch. Not bad, for a supermarket item! Perfect for a picnic on those rare sunny days in Belgium, like we’ve been having recently.
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
A nice glass of freshly squeezed kiwi and orange juice can be found right down Anspach at El Metteko. Visit it on a weekend afternoon when the place is empty and quieter, so you can either relax or get some work done.
The smoothie was better than this whitefish dish (~10 euros). The fish itself was [...]
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
I thought I should let you know: I tasted the eel with green herbs (~24 euros) over at a Greek restaurant in Leuven, and for the record if you go there, don’t get it. I’m used to fried eel from some Chinese places without the prickly spine and with much stronger flavor. What “green herb” [...]
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
These deliciously heavy cabbage rolls stuffed with fragrant sausage mince meat and rice (~9 euros) impressed us all. The polenta with Romanian crumbled cheese and sour cream on the side only added to the warm and full flavors. Coupled with a bold red wine, that meal gives a great taste of what this tiny Romanian [...]
Source: Bite Me, Brussels.
Rich buffalo mozzarella. Succulent and sweet tomato wedges. Shredded basil pesto with coarse salt and strong olive oil.
The best Caprese salad I’ve had in Belgium(~12 euros) by far came from Meet Meat between Schuman or Maelbeek. Each component was key, and the saltiness, tartness, and herb flavors complemented each other perfectly. [...]
Slice of Life
Slice of Life
Source: Slice of Life
Source: Slice of Life
Source: Slice of Life
HermanSorgeloos.jpg)
Interview with De Keersmaeker on the Bruges festival: http://www.flanderstoday.eu/content/twelve-days-dance
The photography exhibition Controverses is, as its name suggests, all about controversial images. The headline-grabbing one is that of a naked, 10 year-old Brooke Shields – yes, the one that was removed from the Tate Modern in London after a visit by the Metropolitan police’s obscenity squad. Most of the photos on display caused an outcry of one sort or another, a few changed history. (Controverses – Botanique, Brussels – Extended until Jan. 3).
More about Brooke Shields, the Kissing Nun and other photos: http://www.flanderstoday.eu/content/scandals-and-other-policymakers
The latest creation by the Antwerp-based company Muziektheater Transparant is A New Requiem. Taking Mozart’s Requiem as its inspiration, the work includes a contemporary literary, musical and artistic response to the old music. The work is a classic example of the company’s music theatre, which as its name suggests combines words and music. Tip: make sure your Dutch is up to scratch or else you might find it difficult to follow the spoken text, though you can still enjoy the song and music. (
Interview with Muziektheater Transparant director Guy Coolen: http://www.flanderstoday.eu/content/song-mad-director
I have to admit that I hadn’t heard of the Hungarian artist Lajos Vajda before I researched this article, but it turns out I’m not the only one as the Antwerp exhibition is the first-ever retrospective of his work in western Europe. Most of his works – paintings, drawings, collages, photomontages - are from the 1930s and influences of Paul Klee, Marc Chagall and Max Ernst can all be found. (
A taster of what the exhibition has to offer: http://www.flanderstoday.eu/content/ordering-chaos
(Copyright for pictures, from top to bottom: ©Herman Sorgeloos; ©Oliviero-Toscani; Drawn by Roger Raveel; ©Panther and Lily, 1930-33, PMMI Ferenczy Museum, Szentendre)
Source: Slice of Life
“Slice of Life” has been up and running for a year. It was my first (and, so far, only) blog and so I had no idea how long it would last and whether anyone other than me (and possibly a few encouraging friends) would read it.
A year on and I can say that far more people have visited it than I thought would be the case. While just over 7,000 hits in a year (and no, this does not include my clicks on the site!) may not rank it among the world’s most popular blogs, I consider those 600+ hits a month to be a respectable number.
What I find even more interesting though is the geographical spread of the people visiting my blog. One of the tools of the site’s hit counter is a map showing me which parts of the world the visitors live in. I’m always amazed to see a little marker on say the Democratic Republic of Congo, a South Pacific island, the Philippines, Bangladesh or Iran. As I don’t know anyone in any of those places, the site’s reach is definitely beyond my immediate circle of friends and colleagues!
A year ago I wrote: “The aim of my blog is to attract readers, in my current home city of Brussels and abroad, with an interest in culture in the broadest sense of the word.” Well, that aim certainly seems to have been achieved.
A year on and I’m also doing a lot more arts writing professionally. I continue to get a complete kick out of it and am sometimes surprised that I’m paid to do something I love so much.
Still, the (unpaid!) blog will certainly continue as it’s fun to have another outlet to write about culture and, when I’m lucky, hear about others’ reactions, experiences and ideas.
Keep reading, enjoying and exploring!
Source: Slice of Life
Kirill Karabits seemed to put every last drop of energy into conducting the final chords of Shostakovich’s sixth symphony, ending with a 180-degree turn to face the audience and revealing a smile that you sensed had been on his face throughout the work.
For me, the symphony was the highlight of last Friday’s concert (October 23), performed by the Orchestre National de Lille at the Bozar concert hall in Brussels. From the rich intensity of the lower strings in the opening largo through to the timpani acrobatics at the close, I was totally drawn in.
One of the least performed of Shostakovich’s 15 symphonies, the sixth is unusually made up of just three movements. The first movement lasts more than half the total duration and is followed by an allegro and a presto, which musicologist David Fanning has described as “a spectral scherzo” and “a manic gallop.”
Karabits, who studied conducting in his native Kiev and is now in his early 30s, was a guest conductor with the Orchestre National de Lille. His main position is as principal conductor of England’s Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, where he has just started a four-year tenure. Given the number of engagements he seems to have lined up elsewhere as guest conductor, I’m optimistic that I’ll get another chance to see him conduct.
The rest of Friday’s concert was a contemporary piece, entitled Wailing, by Chinese composer Lu Wang, who was in Brussels to hear the performance, and Rachmaninov’s third piano concerto. The Chinese piece did little for me, and the concerto had brilliant moments – in fact the pianist Nikolai Demidenko was cheered back on stage for two encores - but the orchestra didn’t seem as at ease with this work as with the symphony. Luckily for me, my favourite part came last and so I left the concert hall with that uplifting feeling that comes when you have been transported away by music.
Source: Slice of Life
Mosaic paving stones have sprung up all over Schaerbeek, the 1030 postcode area of Brussels where I live. In front of almost 100 homes in the area, one paving stone has been replaced by a colourful square of ceramic or glass pieces indicating that the house is part of “Art 1030 – Mozaik Artistik”.
The idea behind this event is that for two consecutive weekends these buildings, be they private homes, workshops or small museums, open their doors and allow the general public a glimpse of the lives and works of local painters, sculptors and other artists. Some of the spaces are workshops crammed with pots of paint and wooden frames, others are living rooms temporarily transformed into mini galleries.
Last weekend I discovered the museum of spontaneous art, the workshop of the late Geo de Vlamynck, known in Belgium for a large mosaic he designed for the Neptunium swimming pool, and a private home where several artists were displaying their wares, which included photography, jewellery and stone sculptures. This weekend I might visit the house on my street where I first saw one of the mosaic street tiles and wondered why it was there.
A full list of the places taking part in “Art 1030 – Mozaik Artistik” is in the catalogue, available online (click here) or as a hard copy at one of the centres organising the event, such as the Maison des Arts/Huis der Kunsten (Chaussée de Haecht 147 Haachtsesteenweg). One of the participating artists is Ingrid Schreyers, who created the mosaic tiles and who takes personalised orders if you fancy brightening up the street in front of your own home.
Source: Slice of Life
The final essay is almost complete, the finishing line in sight. For the last eight months I have been studying ‘Words and Music’ at the Open University and a whole new world has opened up to me. I’ve discovered German lieder, had the opportunity to study the importance of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde and explored how John Milton used the biblical story of Samson and Delilah for his dramatic poem Samson Agonistes, which in turn was adapted by George Frideric Handel for his oratorio Samson.
Having both a literary and musical background, for me the joy of this course was its interdisciplinary nature, the opportunity to analyse how text and music work together and how they enhance or detract from each other. My favourite components of the course were those dealing with classical music, but the module covered everything from South Asian art songs to Broadway musicals. There were even short sections on The Beatles, rap artists (I can now recognise a couple of Eminem songs!) and Sicilian storytellers.
The course allowed me to look in more depth at some areas that I was already familiar with and discover others that were completely new to me. I reacquainted myself with literary theory, explored new ideas in musical theory, brushed up on reading texts critically and learnt how to listen more closely to music using a score. In short, I was reminded what a great intellectual stimulus academic study is and what a joy it is to be learning more about a topic that you’re passionate about.
So as I do my final checks before sending off my last essay, on Virginia Woolf’s short story The String Quartet and Franz Schubert’s Death and the Maiden string quartet, my mind is already wondering what to study next. A Masters in Music is one possibility. Decision time is mid-December, so I still have a few more weeks to think it over.
In the meantime, I hope to find more time to write about my “cultural excursions,” which have recently included a performance of Shakespeare’s Macbeth by the UK-based Cheek by Jowl theatre company - a world premiere in the Belgian town of Namur no less! - and a concert of New Orleans music by the Fondy Riverside Bullet Band. Macbeth has inspired composers to write music on the play’s subject, and the New Orleans music inspired a text about war, loss and celebration that was combined with the music for their recent performance: the links between words and music seem to be everywhere!
Source: Slice of Life
Gilbert and George are probably the most recognised artists in Britain, the interviewer suggests, pointing out that there wouldn’t be many a London cabbie who didn’t know who they were. “Very sweet, isn’t it,” says George deadpan, pausing for dramatic effect and then adding “For one reason or another”.
The gags and the lines just keep coming. Sometimes it’s one half of the duo doing the talking, sometimes they do a quick back and forth and sometimes they speak simultaneously and then burst out laughing. Listening to Gilbert and George talk about their art and their life is an absolute delight.
Smartly dressed in light brown suits and tan leather shoes (they are keen to point out that they don’t always dress the same, just similarly), the pair, now in their 60s, give an impression of formality and correctness. So when George embarks on a tale or two in his plummy English accent, and then rounds it off with coarse language or innuendo, the comic effect is brilliant.
The two work seamlessly together, the one almost merging into the other as they finish off each other’s sentences and constantly talk in the first person plural. On their work: “We don’t see it as work, we can say what we want, it’s an enormous freedom and privilege”. On their daily walks around London: “We walk all the time, you are feeling it non-stop, what is going on. We always go towards ideas that interest us.” On their evening ritual of eating the same dish at the same Turkish restaurant: “We don’t waste our brains reading menus”.
George, born in England, and Gilbert, born in Italy, met in 1967 at St. Martin’s School of Art where they were both studying sculpture. “We just drifted together,” George says. “We were alone”, too “freakish” to become art teachers, adds Gilbert. And so from their home in the East End of London, the duo began creating their “art for all”. And more than 40 years later, they still live in the East End and they are still creating.
A selection of their latest work, the Jack Freak Pictures, opens today (and runs until Oct. 31) at the Baronian Francey gallery in Brussels, one of seven European galleries showing different selections of the series. The entire collection, made up of 153 new artworks and created with the help of just one assistant (“he’s only allowed to scan!” Gilbert emphasises), will be exhibited at the Bozar in Brussels in the autumn of 2010.
Gilbert and George were interviewed by Michael Bracewell at a public event at the Bozar on Sept. 8 2009.
Source: Slice of Life
I wrote in a recent article “If contemporary art is your scene, then the Knokke Biennale should be in your diary.” To be honest though, I’m not really sure that it’s my scene. Of course it depends on how you define contemporary art, but when I walked into Hoet Bekaert’s summer gallery in Knokke - grandly/ironically called the Knokke Biennale – my immediate reaction was “is this it?”
A replica of a matchbox, a donkey’s head that had been used as a stage prop, a photograph resting on two drums of cat food, pieces of carbon copy paper with phrases such as “This looks like something I’ve seen before” mounted on light boxes...you get the picture.
Once the ideas behind the works had been explained, I started to appreciate them more. There is definitely a part of me that seeks to understand and analyse, wanting context and background. And I like to think that I have a relatively open mind. But had I seen these works anywhere but in a gallery, would I really have given them a second glance?
As I was shown round the small garage-like space, I still had a lingering doubt that I was perhaps being taken in by one big joke. After all, the whole Knokke Biennale idea had been done tongue-in-cheek (and brilliantly so), so maybe this was just one more element.
But no, these were works by well-known names on the contemporary art circuit: the donkey’s head was by Thai artist Surasi Kusolwong, who has exhibited at London's Tate Modern; and the work using cat food drums was by Amanda Ross-Ho, with whom the Hoet Bekaert gallery will be going to London’s Frieze Art Fair this year.
Gallery co-founder Jan Hoet Junior was keen to dispel the assumption of many that contemporary art is something that anyone can do. For me though that wasn’t the source of my doubts. It was rather the fact that when I viewed the works, I didn’t feel anything (other than perhaps bewilderment). I want colours or shapes or textures to prompt some instinctive response, to have aesthetic appeal - is that too old-fashioned a thought? or am I just missing the point?
Source: Slice of Life
The Royal Ballet of Flanders has gone on its summer holidays. But before they disappeared I caught the company’s final performance of the 2008-2009 season in Bruges, Belgium, and spoke to the ballet company’s artistic director Kathryn Bennetts.
The Return of Ulysses was the dance performance with which the Antwerp-based ballet company chose to round off their season and the one that it’s taking to the Edinburgh International Festival this August.
The choreography is a combination of classical and contemporary dance; the music switches between Henry Purcell and songs from the 1950s and 1960s such as those of Doris Day; and the costumes are all black for the protagonist Penelope and her many suitors, and a gold skirt suit for the goddess Athena and flippers, goggles and a tutu for Poseidon. It’s a performance of contrasts, one of “light and shade,” as Bennetts put it.
The story of the return of Ulysses is related from his wife Penelope’s perspective. It has been 20 years since Ulysses left to fight in the Trojan wars and in those intervening years of seemingly endless waiting Penelope has fought off many suitors – to various degrees of success, in the eyes of the choreographer Christian Spuck, it would seem. Penelope is subjected to a fair amount of aggressive male behaviour on stage but the suitors’ competitiveness and jealousy of each other means that Penelope is ultimately the one with her pride left intact.
Bennetts sums up the narrative as “an absurd story”, pointing to the absurdity of Penelope waiting for her husband for so many years and then not even recognising him once he finally does return home. The choreographer wants “to express the absurdity of things: the absurdity of the suitors' struggle for power, the absurdity of the gods who do not heed the laments of humans, the absurdity of Penelope endlessly waiting and the sardonic irony of her failing to recognize Ulysses,” as the Royal Ballet of Flanders says on its website. Unsurprisingly perhaps comparisons have been drawn with Samuel Beckett’s ‘Waiting for Godot’.
Bennetts dedicated the performance in Bruges to Pina Bausch, the German choreographer who had died just a few days earlier.
To read more about this performance and another Flemish company going to the Edinburgh Festival, click here.
Belgium STUDS
Belgium STUDS
Source: Belgium STUDS
Mark your calendar now for a traditional Burns’ night supper of Haggis (including a vegetarian version!), Neeps and Tatties all washed down with fine Scotch Whiskey! 
Once sufficiently lubricated we will recite some Burns poetry! Our own STUD Dave Sapiro has kindly offered to organise this event.
For those who need some backround on what a traditional Burns supper is.....check this out.
When: Monday, 25 January 2010
Where: Dave Sapiro’s Residence near Porte de Namur - full details to be provided closer to the day
Time: From 19.30
RSVP: By return if possible - for catering purposes we need to know ASAP if you can come
Cost: TBA
Dave can accommodate 10-12 people so don’t delay and let me know by Tuesday so that we can catch the Haggis in Scotland and get it here and prepared!
I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Cheers
Andy Graham
President
Source: Belgium STUDS
While you have your calendars at hand please mark Saturday, 27 February 2010 for the STUDS Annual Winter Ball. This is the big night of the year where we all get together with our Significant Others (SO’s) to eat, drink and dance the night away!
It is a great chance for SO’s to meet each other and meet the other STUDS. It is also the night where we get to dress up and dust off the tuxedo or our best suit!!
We are working on a venue and will let you know more soon. In the meantime, if anyone has any suggestions for a venue please let me know. We will also be running a tombola in the lead up to the ball so please start saving your small change for a chance to win! I have been assured by other members that this is a night that should not be missed.
Andy Graham
President
Source: Belgium STUDS
Hey Guys,
I was a member back in the late nineties and happened to come across your website. Got wondering if anybody there is still a member and remembers me. Back then we had a home golf course at Louven La Neuve though we played all over the area , at times in France.
Perhaps someone would remember Kelly, a former President of the Club. I visited him and family during the fall of 2002 in Singapore where we played golf in Indonesia and Malasia -- quite the life, when the wive's were working, that is.
Mine was French from Paris and she worked for NATO, and as I was a retired Air Force jock I had all the benefits of both NATO and US retiree status. Lived in Stockel, not far from where you hold the Friday get togethers, which back then were actually in a Stockel coffee shop just off the Square.
I'm retired now, living in Ft Lauderdale and I gotta admit, Florida is the place to retire. Got a French built 32' Beneteau sailboat and am enjoying the Caribbean waters.
STUDS is/was a great idea and it is pleasant to see it remains for guys -- and I understand some gals -- to connect to share mutual interests. Didja know STUDS was actually started by a coupla wives trying to find something for their husbands to occupy themselves? The weekly meetings began at a McDonalds on Friday mornings, rain or shine of course, and involved mostly golfers. And we were really patient with those who joined even though not golfers.
OK fellow STUDS forever..................Bonne Chance a tout.
Casey Collier
Source: Belgium STUDS
The Istas restaurant, adjoining the Hotel Sorret is long established and offers classic Belgian cuisine. Customer reviews rate it highly, and our own Ed Elly highly recommends it as well.
The venue: Restaurant Istas
Source: Belgium STUDS
A new 'American' coffee house has opened in Bruge. It's kind of a Studs thing, as back in 1999, Joe, who is Belgian, met an American named Oline, from Bakersfield California in Bruge. She loved Bruge so much she gave up the California weather to move to Belgium.
She evidently liked Joe a bit too, as they are now married and have a 20 month old son named Tristan.
Oline opened "Bean around the World" last Saturday, she wanted to give the Bruges people a taste of a real American coffee house.
They are trying to spoil their customers as best they can. There are free newspapers available (Flemish and American), free WiFi, and a computer available if you don't have your laptop with.
So if you are taking your visitors on the obligatory trip to Bruges for sightseeing, you might want to stop in, say hello, check your email, and get some local information about this wonderful Belgian city.
Bean around the World is located at Genthof 5, in Bruge , close to Jan van Eyckplein and is open 7 days a week. They have a group on facebook through which all the news on the coffee house can be checked out. Phone: 050 70 35 72
Source: Belgium STUDS
This year the Bayern representitives of the EU organised its traditional 'Oktoberfest' at Place Jourdan. As usual, this festival remains loyal to the famous München beer festival with October beer. A giant tent with 1500 seats and typical music was set up for the festival.
Thanks to President Andy for organising another a great event, enjoy the pictures....captions will be left off to protect the guilty party's.
What happens at STUDS.....stays at STUDS.
(click to enlarge)
Source: Belgium STUDS
It's too bad it had to end like this as Clijsters was kicking her rather large ass anyway.....but an all Belgian final didn't shake up as Caroline Wozniacki beat Yanina Wickmayer pretty easily.
Source: Belgium STUDS
A few pictures of a luncheon for Brian as he is heading back to the states and could not make the party hosted for the other five who were leaving this summer.
Good luck to Brian and Steph on re-entry.
Source: Belgium STUDS
The multicultural communities of Brussels come together in the middle of the city on this day of colourful, exuberant celebration of the Zinneke Parade. Around 4,000 participants converge in the main avenues of the city centre, creating a carnival atmosphere with brass bands, actors, dancers and musicians.
The Zinnodes, as the workshops are known, work hard for months following a preparatory stage of about a year and a half. With the input of thousands of volunteers the result is always varied and surprising, a delightful mixture of styles and genres in one happy street party.
Zinneke is also an artistic and social experiment which aims to combat inequality and to form a project in which everyone can participate.
Boulevard Anspach and main avenues of centre (Venue)
Main focus of Parade route is Boulevard Anspach
Website www.zinneke.org
Source: Belgium STUDS
Starting on the 4th of July you can enjoy a number of Hollywood blockbusters being previewed in a Brussels cinema on Place du Brouckère. Viewers are also treated to an open-air concert by an American group on the evening of August 3rd, and the event closes with fireworks.
Gear Ratios
Gear Ratios
Source: Gear Ratios
In case it isn’t obvious, I’m in the middle of redeveloping this blog. So accept my pre-emptive apology for whatever problems you encounter. I’m hoping to have it finished by the end of next week — so look for news and tons of new stuff soon.
Source: Gear Ratios
For anybody who might be thinking it’s been too long since my last update, blame Cyclocross Magazine. In the past two (and a bit more) weeks I’ve covered nine pro races and raced three times myself in the Vlaamse Cyclocross Cup. Of the days off from ‘cross, I spent a couple either sick [...]
Source: Gear Ratios
Last year I had one of my best races of the season—in fact, one of the best of my career—in Varsenare. The course, flat with a series of technical turns between long, straight sections, barriers, and a long finishing stretch on the road, was a good match for my strengths. It was really cold, and [...]
Source: Gear Ratios
It’s been a long time since I posted an update here, largely because the demand of my work on the newly-launched PROBA2, writing for Cyclocross Magazine, and still trying to race once in a while have all but maxed out my waking schedule. But, fear not, here’s the update you’ve been waiting for! Zwijndrecht I capped [...]
Source: Gear Ratios
So the last few weeks have been incredibly busy, and an update on both Koppenberg and my own race in Zwijndrecht are on their way. But the reason the last few weeks have been so busy is that we have been working very hard to prepare for the launch of PROBA2, the satellite I’ve been working [...]
Source: Gear Ratios
Zingem was the first race I’ve done this season that I also did last season, and I was kind of excited to finally race on a course that I knew. These Flemish courses are full of really nasty little technical climbs and whoop-de-doos (that’s a scientific way of referring to a class of super-steep [...]
Source: Gear Ratios
The way I see it there are things you can do when you organize a race that make it really great and there are things you can to that make it pretty much awful. The race in Bevere on Saturday featured both. One of the best things you can do is build a [...]
Source: Gear Ratios
So I haven’t written anything here for a while. That’s because I’m busy at work and busy breaking more bikes and not racing. The not racing thing was intentional, since we’re going to be spending pretty much every weekend between now and the end of January at bike races, it seemed like a [...]
Source: Gear Ratios
So I’ve been a little slow to update the blog lately because I’ve been busy gluing tires, cleaning layers of dust and grime from my bike, and driving all over Flanders so I can race. So it’s catch-up day today. We’re now two races into the season, which kicked off (for me, anyway) last weekend [...]
Source: Gear Ratios
As a solar physicist, They Might Be Giants’ hit Why Does The Sun Shine? has always been near to my heart. But many people have pointed out that it does contain some important inaccuracies, most notably that the Sun isn’t a “mass of incandescent gas”; it’s plasma. Well, it turns out, TMBG have corrected themselves.
SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
Well...I mean "slaves" not customers, since they were a monopoly at the time. I thought I said goodby to ELECTRABEL and its "terrific" customer service and bills two years ago, when I switched energy supplier to LAMPIRIS. But This week I received a bill from ELECTRABEL. Believe it or not!!!! they are sending me a bill for electricity that I consumed almost two years ago!!!!!!How can they be so
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
Number oneor number two?maybe both?
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
It took me 7 months, 5 physical visits to "La Commune" during working time, 12 working hours, four pictures, more than 20 papers signed by hand, and approximately 29 euros cost.I am an expat, and unfortunately or not, I do not work for EU institutions or NATO. And I say this because I heard they have special treatment for this.....Anyway, just to let you know, I work for a private company, and
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
Mobile commnications in Belgium can be expensive or cheap, depending on your use, and the country you are comming from!!!! Look at this interesting data:Brussels Blogger » Blog Archive » Belgium is expensive for heavy GSM users
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
Well, I did not have time yet to write about my experiences with LA POSTE. I promise I will. In the meantime, you can read what others say about it...Brussels Blogger » Blog Archive » Sending a letter in Brussels? Good luck with the Belgian Post.
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
Since I live in Belgium I buy more and more things onlince, and not because of price, but mainly because good service, quality of products and confort. It is my choice. Consumer choice is being restricted by certain brands that are blocking the sale of legitimate products online. I would like to introduce you the campaign for consumer choice, supported by eBay, to stop unfair anti-internet
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
In my last four years in Belgium, I think only once the waiter came to me and ask me what I would like to drink in less than a minute!!!!! Last halloween I went with some friends (yes despite my looks I have friends) to a well-known beer bar at the centre. The room for non-smokers was almost empty, so we sat in two tables. The owner came after 10 minutes to take the order. We were not fully ready
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
Sun 01/11/2009 - 14:50 www.flandernews.be From now on it is easier to change banks than it was before. All the customer has to do is go to the new bank and it will arrange everything for the client. One signature is all it takes from now onChanging banks is now easy in Belgium. The customer just has to ask the new bank they want to use to arrange everything for him or her. The bank accounts will
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
This is so hilarious I let you read the article....How bad has the Belgacom service must be, that someone goes to that extreme?????How do you eat that Belgacom?Oct 20, 2009 -- An American hacker using the name Vendetta claims to have access to all the user names of Belgacom's internet susbcribers, reports Userbase.be.The hacker claims to have exploited a hole in the BBOX modems provided by
Source: SERVICE IN BRUSSELS & BELGIUM IN GENERAL
Brussels, rue Montoyer, does it sound familiar??P.S. Apologies for not being very active in this blog lately. I have to find the time, it is not because I don't have the contents!!!
Belgian Waffle
Belgian Waffle
Source: Belgian Waffle
This is a 'look what came in the post' post. (See what I did there? Yeah, nothing, shut up).
(Sorry about the horrific glare, too. I was too lazy and filled with dullness to take it again. But it's giving me a headache to look at it, so a bad call on my part. )
My first two thoughts on opening this:
Source: Belgian Waffle
I am trying to find a way of saying something other than "I am really really fucking tired. And a bit grumpy and self-loathing". Give me a moment. Oh, weekly review? We haven't done that for ages and, well, it fills a hole doesn't it.
Source: Belgian Waffle
M and I bond over many things - ponies, whining, giant Stohrer macarons pistache-framboises, poking fun at sections of the blogosphère. But we also share a secret fetish. No, it's nothing like that, we are too filled with world-weary snarkdom to share odd sexual proclivities. No. We are both a bit obsessed with beauty products and make up. That's right, like proper girls. We swap beauty blog links slightly shame-facedly, and talk at length about implausible cellulite treatments. It's lame, but harmless. We are damaging noone but HSBC and their bastard colleagues.
Source: Belgian Waffle
I haven't done the post I was planning today, because it required me to go up to the attic, a fact which tells you all you need to know about my energy levels right now. On top of that, I made the fatal error of agreeing to watch a DVD in my bed with the children (the deathless "Street Sharks - Requins de la Ville" in which a gang of renegade shark/human hybrids fight crime and eat burgers, whilst the evil Dr Pirhanoid creates a master race of sea creature / human hybrids, each more unintentionally hilarious than the last). Now I am stuck in here, trapped in the doughy clutches of my exceptionally comfortable mattress. The rest of the house is desolation and squalor. When I went downstairs to try and locate a ringing telephone, the sight of the dog sleeping in the remains of a box of Mini Magnums, his scrawny limbs arranged neatly around some chocolate stained, shredded bills, sent me scuttling back to bed. If I had any form of nourishment up here, I would most certainly not be getting up again. As it is, I have to go and switch Lashes's light off in a minute and it seems outlandishly hard - there are, like, 20 stairs! Honestly, how long before I can just abdicate all responsibility and leave him to watch hyper violent Japanese anime and smoke dope all night?
Source: Belgian Waffle
Pitifully starved of romance, my head has been turned once again by the siren song of Kiss & Ride, the forum where semi-literate Belgian commuters post their haiku form pleas for love into the ether, and where the ether responds with non-sequiturs about how many carriages there are on the 7h28 from Luik to Charleroi. It rarely disappoints. Although the Swiffer remains unrivalled as a totem of Belgo-romance, we have a strong performance this week from a folding bicycle. As always, I have kept the originals with all their myriad spelling errors for extra authenticity.
| A toi la jeune femme aux cheveux courts et noir, que je croise pratiquement tous les matins à Braine l'Alleud; et parfois même au hasard d'une rue de Bruxelles. Que tu sois accompagnée de ton vélo pliable, ou d'une connaissance, tes sourires magnifiques, ton regard si doux et nos bonjours timides sont des moteurs pour une bonne journée. Je suis à chaque rencontre sous le charme. Que ta journée sois belle |
Source: Belgian Waffle
Oh, things are dull round here, aren't they? I'm overcome with a desire to say appalling, outrageous things, but then I have to swallow it down. Dull. DULL. I'll see what I can sneak past my internal censor tonight.
Source: Belgian Waffle
One of the best things - possibly THE best, though it would be very hard to choose a highlight - about Lucha Libre Belgian style, was the amount of audience participation. And when I say audience participation, I mainly mean MASKS.
Source: Belgian Waffle
Source: Belgian Waffle
Reports of my recovery were greatly exaggerated to the point of demented optimism. Admittedly this is partly my own fault for frolicking out last night feeling "Better! Totally better!" and having 2 (Belgian) margaritas and a heap of (Belgian) tortilla chips for dinner, then having to set off at 7 for the airport. Please PLEASE fix the Eurostar because I can neither afford, nor cope with Zaventem International Flughafen or whatever the fuck they are calling it now. It will never have the sheen of glamour that international travel should have for me, not since a particularly searing day some years ago spent collecting and transporting several boxes of scraps of oil stained paper from the truculent workmen in the Sabena workshop for a court case. (REMINDER/HEALTH WARNING: the law is NOT like Damages).
Source: Belgian Waffle
Claire's Brussels Blog
Claire's Brussels Blog
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
... or co-write. Or ghost write. Or adapt. Or translate. The list is endless...
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
It is a truth universally acknowledged (or at least it ought to be) that you can tell a lot about someone from what is on their bookshelves. Which is possibly why they seem to be what my eye gravitates towards the first time I am in someone's home. (This, among many other things, is a trait I share with Catherine, the heroine of my book, Inevitable.)
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
... One of my all-time favourite keyword searches this week:
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
I know, I know. There are more important things to get all heated up about.
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
It's a funny thing, this cyber space lark. Possibly even a quirkier place than the strange but endearing country where I find myself living.
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
I've been struggling with my writing lately. My novel feels two-dimensional and in need of a sub plot. My brilliant, deep, philosophical ideas seem to come out on paper as "he said hi she said here's some French verbs he said okay then they kissed and then it was sad the end".
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
Recently, aside from the usual plethora of "Bradley Whitford" and "Janel Moloney pregnant" keyword searches on my blog (I particularly liked "Bradley Whitford Dimples"), I've also had the following...
Yes, I'm going, but I have no available information at this time (as I've said before - only one thing better than meeting with God - meeting with God in the sunshine then spending the afternoons at the pool!)
It takes place during the last week of July at the Centre Chrétien de Gagnieres near Ales - nearest airport Nimes. Word of advice: be careful not to mistake your arrival time for your departure time, or you will have to fork out 100 Euros to fly to Marseille and get the train from there. I've heard.
the best job in the world grammar
Well, I don't know who would search for this, but at a guess - my future husband.
Weird things coming up in Belgium
I'm sure there are many, many of those, coming soon to a town near you. Possibly there already, in fact.
translate "destined for greatness" in Japanese
Wow. My short story isn't published yet, and someone already wants to translate it into Japanese already...? (those delusions of grandeur again...)
Seriously?
Looking for a French teacher in Brussels
Well, that would be me. I can teach you French, English or Spanish, face to face in a Brussels café, or anywhere in the world over Skype. Feel free to get in touch at languagetuition at gmail dot com. You can check out my linkedin profile including recommendations at http://www.linkedin.com/in/languagetuition
Is there a claires in new york
No idea, but hopefully there will soon be a Claire there!
Also, here’s the thing. Somebody in Luton, Bedfordshire, checks my blog for updates several times a day, and has been doing so for some time now. I’m increasingly intrigued. Who are you? A literary scout? A potential suitor? Bradley Whitford’s undercoveragent? Feel free to say hi on a comment and let me know.
That is all.
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
I'm not sure how, but word has somehow got around that I am something of a Bradley Whitford fan.
Source: Claire's Brussels Blog
I've taken a big step in the last few weeks: I wouldn't exactly call it having reconciled myself to there being no more West Wing, but I'm coming to terms with the fact that if if I want to see more of Bradley Whitford, I will have to cross back from fiction into reality and remind myself that he is not only Josh Lyman. That he is, in fact, an actor, and appears in lots of other stuff. It turns out, actually, that he's in quite a lot of films, but often films available only in the US, and often not as the lead (though quite why baffles me, but that's another story).
