Worth a click!

Another Mathijs design...on yellow this time!
Who's in for a vote?

Helpdesk :)

Rotterdam, december 21!

(click on slide to watch show in full size)

Merry Christmas!

Some snowy pics

BookCrossing Christmas Spirit

This huge box, wrapped in Xmas paper, arrived today.

Heart-warming indeed! <3

Seeing where the box came from made me smile big time:

Phoenix-Flight, a BookCrosser from Amsterdam offered to send a "kerstpakket" (it's a Dutch tradition for employers to give their employees some kind of gratification around Xmas) to someone who wouldn't get one (for whatever reason). I joined the raffle, didn't count on anyting, but when I saw this package, I immediately knew what it was. OMG! I got my own kerstpakket!!!

I'll let the pictures do the talking :)

(still getting to know my new camera + my software for adjusting photos crashed = not the quality I'd like to show, but I just HAVE to share these!)

Isn't it amazing how much sweetness, warmth and generosity fits in one box?

My gosh...

Thank you so much, Phoenix-Flight!!!

Camera Quest

Glorious day: I got to buy my new camera!!! I had been looking around, browsing reviews, going to shops to feel how the grip was. And I had been fallen in love very soon, but since I had to wait for money to be available, I browsed some more and tried some other cams as well. All kinda similar, 'cause the kind of camera that fits both our budget and my wishes is a bridge camera: still a compact cam, but more possibilities to adjust. And it's got a firm & rather large body, that's what I like :)

The first snowy day of the year and I knew traffic would have some problems, but hey, how could I wait another day or even week to go get my new buddy? That kind of patience is not my style ;)

As you can see in the pic (took it with my phone, so don't worry), the busstop here doesn't have an abri/shelter. At first I didn't mind, but when the first bus didn't show up and the snow came down harder, I got a bit cold. An hour passed and still no bus to Tiel. Chilled to the bone! A normal person would have gone home, I guess, so I went to another busstop and headed to Wageningen :)

Walked around in Wageningen for an hour and a half...no shop had "my" camera in stock! Aaargh!!

Ah well, when you know it's available in another city, you just take that long bus drive from Wageningen to Tiel.

Straight through to the photo store in Tiel and hooray!!! There it was!!!!

No, mr salesman, I don't want to try out others and I don't need you to convince me, I already made up my mind, now give me that thing asap...haha, the salesman said I was glowing and all lighting up when he handed me the bag. Indeed, I couldn't wipe the smile off of my face, guess I'm still smiling right now :)

 Celebrated my purchase with Danish coffee (w/ rum & cinnamon, it was yummy) before heading home.

On the busride home (phew, at least this bus did show up!) the bag next to me was begging to be unpacked, but I was a good girl and waited until I was home.

Oh and on my way from the busstop to our street, I was stopped by a policeman. I've literally never ever seen one in this small village of ours, there are only a few cops for the whole region and they seem to be invisible. Haha, now I've finally seen one and he was kind enough to let me go if I promised to walk instead of cycle (lights on my bike are always broken). No problem, the snow was too high already to cycle.

Well, time to show you my new buddy! This is an official shot:

And this is us, so happy together! :)

(better shots will follow, I've spent hours of testing & playing already, no artsy shots yet)

Snow!!!

Ahhh, it's always a joy to wake up in a snowy white world!
The cats were excited as well, but they all found it was too cold on the feet. Puschkin didn't even go outside, he's seen winter so many times before and he prefers his cosy basket ;)

Is it the hair?

Just bumped into a picture of my teenage idol: Koen. Oh, how did I adore him! I wasn't the only one, in fact I was one of the sreaming girls in the crowd who almost fainted when *he* appeared onstage.

Nowadays, I'm not so crazy about him anymore, I think he's kinda shallow and he's too much into car racing, soccer and gossip tv. But once in a while I play his old songs and picture him as he was back then.

I want to believe my taste has changed and hopefully improved since my teenage years. I still have a fling for an artist, I guess I'll always have a weak spot for who ever touches me through their music.
Since about 10 years that spot is occupied by Frédérique Spigt, a female singer from the Netherlands. I buy every album, even the one album I didn't like very much (it is in French. I hate chansons!) and go to the theatre when she's on tour.

I thought the only thing she had in common with my old fling Koen was the language...but look at these photos! I guess there's a lot more of Koen in Fré than you'd think...;)

Dank u Sinterklaasje!

Sinterklaas kapoentje

Gooi wat in mijn schoentje

Gooi wat in mijn laarsje

Dank u Sinterklaasje!

It's December 5th and an old Dutch tradition is to celebrate the birthday of Saint Nicholas today. Kids get presents (just like boxing day) and adults exchange gifts and write rhymes for each other.

On the Dutch BookCrossing forum, the tradition is very much alive and we got to send gifts and a rhyme to another BookCrosser, staying anonymous. And mailing out a package means receiving one as well! Hooray!

The package I received had been waiting for me for a few days already, hard to stick to the promise not to open it before today;). But I managed and it was worth waiting for! A box full of presents in jolly themed paper, golden coins and a very cute poem. And look what was in the wrappings! Aquarel pencils, a sketch book, a chocolate M, a cute little notebook and a set of ballpoints! Yes, definately a good way to get rid of a bad mood ;)

Dankjewel BookCross-Sint!!!