30 Jan '06 - 19:54 Door
29 Jan '06 - 16:05 Darn
Soms best wel lastig dat dit geen anoniem blog is ...
28 Jan '06 - 21:36 De 4's (2)
En waarom ook niet eigenlijk .... bedankt Neel & Miti.
4... baantjes die je ooit hebt gehad
- Postbode
- Olievat vuller
- Verzekerings Agent
- Account Manager (nog)
17:58 BBC In DoS Attack Shocker
Not sure what's going on exactly, but the BBC seems to take a keen interest in me for some reason.
26 Jan '06 - 20:30 De 4's II
Dit stokje via Miti komt momenteel een beetje ongelegen, aangezien het bedrijf waarvoor ik werk is overgenomen door de concurrent. Vrij plotseling wel. Hoelang ik mijn huidige baantje hou is derhalve nogal ongewis. Nu was ik al wel van plan om zo dit jaar eens naar wat anders om te zien maar dit viel me even koud op m'n dak ... ik loop zometeen nog serieus gevaar dat ik weer naar Nederland terugkom ;)
23 Jan '06 - 21:43 See London By Bus
This illustration shows clearly the three preferred methods of travelling by bus in London;
1. Travel by Landmark Bus: Routes 9 and 94 still operate Routemaster buses. As many people assume that these are out of service and therefore don't realise it's an actual 'official' bus, this is your best bet of getting a seat on a London bus.
2. Travel by Sightseeing Bus: Sorry, American and Japanese passport holders only.
3. Travel by Plebs Bus: the famous "correct change only" buses that can cost you quite a lot if you haven't got it. These buses are 'standing only' and the driver is likely to speak no or very little English making this a truly international experience.
20:12 Witają Londyn !
Rozmowa języka polskiego jest zaletą w Londynie !
(crappy translation thanks to Poltran)
22 Jan '06 - 21:16 London By TomTom
A busy day today, as today we explored London by car. Equipped with TomTom we set out to brave London's (less busy on sundays) roads. First point of call was Alexandra Palace. Eight miles, roughly half an hour London time (in London, you are not interested in miles but purely in minutes/hours). Ally Pally was once home to the 14 hour technicolor dream but nowadays is it used as an ice-rink and exhibition centre. The views from Ally Pally are stunning. But don't bother with the telescopes.
Once in the Palace I was asked by Security whether I was a member of the Press. In true News Of The World fashion I answered; "Me? Never". Exiting things happen at Ally Pally. Loads and loads of middle-aged men we saw today at the Palace. Turned out we stumbled across the annual London Model Engineering Exhibition. We were enthralled and we can't wait for the International Woodworking Exhibition (17-19 feb) but most of all, The Knitting & Stitching Show. Write 12-15 October in your diary please!
Next up was Wimbledon, a mere 10 miles (that's two hours in London time). Just as boring as the Tennis. En-route we were swamped by Chelsea-fans, a common occurance in those parts no doubt as we drove past a place called Stamford Bridge. Also en-route we sampled the delights of Fulham, Knightsbridge, Kentish Town and Camden among others.
Last leg was a TomTom-trip to the new Wembley Stadium. We expected an empty building-site but got this instead! They were flogging everything there; DVD-players for £12 to name one. I couldn't help thinking that those were sold with £12 profit ... London by car, with TomTom by our side; great stuff!
17:39 Is Your TV HD Ready ?
Well this is the biggest con ever. I have just made a substantial investment in a new LCD "HD-Ready" TV. This because 'High Definition TV' is apparently the biggest new thing since the invention of sliced bread. And what do I see today at the Ally Pally?! The BBC have already been broadcasting in High Definition since 1936!
21 Jan '06 - 20:40 Blue Blue Jeans ...
... I bought them on the Portobello Road, on a Saturday (Blur). Oplettende lezertjes dees weblogs weten dat ik geregeld met den camera op pad ben in delen van London. Vandaag was ik op een plek die ik nog niet eerder had bezocht vreemd genoeg; Portobello Road. En dan met name de beroemde markt. En niets teveel gezegd zeg, da's me nogal een handelsplekje. Meer dan een kilometer lang alleen maar winkels en stalletjes met prulletjes en nog eens prulletjes. Voor antiekfans en koelkastmagneet-fanaten een absoluut aan te raden paradijs.
Ook liep ik er bij toeval tegen Denbigh Close aan. Mini-fans kennen dit cul-de-sacje wel; in de film The Italian Job (1969-versie) had Charlie Croker hier zijn Swinging London pad. Op de terugweg werd ik op Charing X Station nog even blij verrast met de mededeling of ik even uit de trein wilde stappen. Men had namelijk besloten het station te sluiten vanwege een controlled explosion op Track 2 ...
18:51 "I Want That One Over There"
20 Jan '06 - 20:01 Nederland, Oh Nederland
Jij blijft m'n kampioen. Wat een heerlijk land toch ook. Weet zich van de grote boze wereld geen kwaad.
18:26 Photo Friday - Pink
16:10 Mind The ... Whale ?
Hurray! London Zoo today announced the opening of its new Thames-Extension.
Via BBC.
19 Jan '06 - 17:44 Thursday Challenge - High
09:00 Game On!
Hans Hoogervorst: „De Nederlandse jongere is de zuipschuit van Europa”. Mhoehahaha ... hoe wereldvreemd kun je wezen? Wel eens in Engeland wezen kijken Hans? Daarbij vergeleken zijn Nederlandse jongeren geheelonthouders. Beetje voorzichtig dus met die 'Europa-titel' ...
00:21 Statement
I "being of sound mind and trustworthy" having visited Arno's flat can confirm that having consideration for all the circumstances, that said neighbours television is *flurking huge". I mean, really really massive. Its un-bloody-believable. What does this guy think he's doing??? Having watched the show for a few minutes, a couple of things have come up. Oh god!!! Firstly, it faces the road which is, I think, a little dangerous. I'm sure that Arno will witness road accidents a plenty as some sweet little innocent tea drinking People's Friend reading
old dear has a heart attack at the sight of a massively digitally enlarged penis homing in to view. I suppose that she'll go with a smile on her face though. Secondly, how do people get their legs into that position without the risk of serious spinal injury?
Still, look on the bright side. If he ever needs an alibi about thirty people will be able to vouch that on the said date he was in watching the telly! Wanker!
17 Jan '06 - 22:49 Turn Me On Dead Man
Just when you think it can't get any crazier on this here World Wide Web ...
22:09 A Very Stupid Question
19:27 Rather Boring
Wat je niet doet als je je verveeld; DVD-lijst maken. Tot m'n schrik heb ik er 126. Boxsets zelfs meegeteld als 1x. What's the point, waarom koop ik dat spul toch, die kan ik toch nooit meer allemaal bekijken. I need to get out more ...
16 Jan '06 - 20:08 Stapler In A Jelly
“What is the single most important thing for a company? Is it the building? Is it the stock? Is it the turnover? It’s the people, investment in people. My proudest moment here wasn’t when I increased profits by 17%, or cut expenditure without losing a single member of staff. No. It was a young Greek guy, first job in the country, hardly spoke a word of English, but he came to me and he went ‘Mr. Brent, will you be the Godfather to my child?’. Didn’t happen in the end. We had to let him go, he was rubbish. He was rubbish!”
15 Jan '06 - 22:01 Pijltjes Gooien
Wat een poeha in Nederland zeg. Darts ... een televisie-sport voor mensen in council-flats. Gouden kettingen, tattoos en andere glimmende dingen compulsory. Hoog Vicky Pollard gehalte. Ik heb nog geen enkele van mijn Engelse collega's en vrienden horen praten over het "WK Darts"! En ik woon in Dartford, daar zou het toch populair moeten zijn. Ze zitten nou niet echt op het puntje van hun stoel hier. Darts is just not cricket. Het is zelfs zo belangrijk dat de BBC de uitslag van de finale niet eens op de voorpagina zet.
Maarja, komisch vind ik het wel al die Nederlandse tralala en zolang 'we' winnen zal 't wel populair blijven. And why not? Harmless fun. Dat wil zeggen, totdat we het (officieuze) WK Breien winnen natuurlijk.
18:23 London Icons
11:56 Bath. Twinned With ....
Instead of staying home at my birthday 'watching my big TV', Konstantin and I decided to visit the city of Bath. After focussing on London for the past 2.5 years we finally realised 'that there is something else out there'. I had visited Bath before but that was quite a while ago. The Roman Baths are one of the main attractions and rightly so. It's almost a pity you can't go in but I believe they've built a modern equivalent close to the original site. Pulteney Bridge and the Royal Crescent are other must sees.
It's one of these places where you can spend a very enjoyable day and historic architecture-freaks can eat their heart out. It's very affluent, not exactly your average Dartford-folk there. I haven't seen a single baseball-cap or trainers. And looking at the houses, I certainly wouldn't mind owning a pad there. And if, like me, you're Dutch and not used to a hill or views; that's stunning there too. You can even visit America. Fortune-seekers would do well in Bath, just visit the Roman Baths and you will find wealth beyond your wildest dreams. People throw everything into those wells ...
Oh yes, and it's twinned with .......
14 Jan '06 - 19:35 There's Always One ...
00:21 They Say It's My Birthday
And indeed it is, so I want some attention. 36 Comments are required. Whilst you are busy doing that, I will be residing in the City of Bath trying to come to terms with being on the wrong side of 30.
For my Dutch visitors: ik ben jarig en ik wens aandacht. Indien dat niet mogelijk is volstaat sterke drank.
13 Jan '06 - 21:00 Hello Neighbour ! (3)
So you think you've got a big TV huh? Well ... let the battle commence ...
(As you can see Grace totally agrees ....)
12 Jan '06 - 22:10 Thursday Challenge - New
14:59 Announcement
Ik weet dat de lezertjes dees weblogs vreselijk bezorgd zijn geweest om de gehoortoestand van uw webmeester. Na twee maanden gewacht te hebben voor een afspraak kan ik u mededelen dat Dr. Patel van het Darent Valley Hospital mij geheel gezond heeft verklaard. Ik wist niet wat ik hoorde. Hij herhaalde dat ik geheel gezond was. Ik mag nu weer zonder begeleiding op straat lopen. Dank voor al uw zorgen.
PS: Whot (zie comments in link) heeft de prijs gewonnen. Hij mag 'em hier ophalen.
10 Jan '06 - 11:41 How Very, Very Sad
Having lived abroad for a while makes you look at your own country a bit more objectively. And I have to say the Dutch have not always overly impressed me. We are not even half as good as we think we are on many fronts. We can be extremely coarse, ill-mannered and our 'sense of humor' is often immature and with a negative undertone. But what I read today beats the lot. Appearantly, someone thinks it's fun to kit-out Dutch supporters for the upcoming World Championships Football in orange-coloured Nazi-helmets.
And this from the country that made a big fuss about our Army having to wear new American-style helmets 'that looked a bit like nazi-helmets'. I know the English usually do not shy away from German Nazi references, but I doubt even they will sink to these low depths.
Ofcourse the seller of the product is happy with all the attention and is probably retarded enough to see this all as a big joke. Haha. Only it isn't a joke, it's simply a well prepared insult disguised as 'a joke'. And there will be plenty of Dutch people with no brain buying this stuff. Holland as I found out, has a plentyful supply of these people. Dutch national team fans are usually the best-mannered bunch you can have on any tournament. But I hope the Germans will beat the crap out of any Dutch idiot wearing this helmet.
However, I fear that the Germans will take such pity on so much stupidity and bad taste that they will probably just pad them on the back and wish them the best for the future and hope their mental problems will resolve soon.
[UPDATE]Even the people in Dallas are discussing it now[/UPDATE]
09 Jan '06 - 20:10 From The Archives (2)
I'm using the excuse of a 'severe lack of inspiration' to bore you with some older archive shots.
08 Jan '06 - 18:55 From The Archives
13:29 Communication Via Log
Niet tevreden met het simpelweg communiceren via een 'comment-box', beginnen we nu met de nieuwe rage; communiceren via Log. Wat doe ik in mijn vrije tijd vraagt Whot. Welnu, dit weekend, behalve het fotograferen van buren, vrij weinig. De plannen waren zoals gebruikelijk geweldig, maar tis koud, tis nat, tis grijs; derhalve is mijn favoriete zondagsbesteding, zijnde fotograferen in London, even uitgesteld. Ook daarom ging mijn plannetje om de Primrose Hill foto voor Jackles even te updaten nog even niet door. No use today.
Ook heb ik niks te winkelen. Mijn goede voornemen was om geen grote bedragen uit te geven in 2006 en daarom heb ik mijn nieuwe LCD TV op 31 december gekocht. Mijn oude TV staat namelijk op knappen (ouwe Matsui van 8 jaar oud, ik krijg alleen beeld als ik de scart-kabel opprop zodat 'ie nog contact maakt met iets waardoor er beeld ontstaat) en derhalve ook moet ik ervoor zorgen dat mijn porno films veel beter zijn dan die van die buurman. Ik ben tenslotte Nederlander en heb een reputatie te verdedigen.
Om het gevoel te krijgen dat ik toch nog iets gedaan heb dit weekend ga ik bang rennen in Bluewater. Volgend weekend wordt 't wat socialer en interessanter, aangezien ik mijn verjaardag volgende zaterdag (23 word ik alweer, give or take) ga vieren in Bath. Ik kan me slechtere plekken verzinnen. Die drie mensen die ik ken hier konden zowaar ook nog komen ook. Anderen hadden een of ander excuus dat ze in Nederland woonden ofzo ...
To recap, uit het spannende leven van een expat: we've got the same shit over here as you've got over there, mine is just a little bit different.
07 Jan '06 - 13:59 Hello Neighbour ! (2)
I'm actually getting worried myself about my sudden fascination with my neighbours, but I simply couldn't miss this one ... it's streetphotography I like, even at my own doorstep ...
06 Jan '06 - 20:20 Hello Neighbour !
Last month, I mentioned my neighbour 500 yards accross the road (and car park) with his new, very large, plasma TV. The guy is evidently totally oblivious to the fact that the whole neighbourhood can see clearly what's on his TV. A sort of "drive-in" he's created here.
And I have to say, it's quite an experience, looking out of your window straight into a porn movie. Unfortunately, making pictures of this is a bit tricky due to the light but to prove my point I don't think this 'blow up' leaves much to the imagination ....
18:06 Photo Friday - Panorama
17:03 Down And Out-Sourced
In 2003, I quit IBM in Greenock and moved to the London area as for the previous two years, writings were on the wall at IBM. I'm very sad for all my ex-collegues who had to move from IBM to Sanmina-SCI as it was obvious to me from the outset what would happen to them ...
"Carmine Renzulli, executive vice president for human resources at Sanmina, said the decision had been taken with "regret"."
What 'Carmine' failed to mention was that this decision was surely taken five years ago when they took over the plant!
05 Jan '06 - 23:07 It's A Mad Mad Mad World
Just when you think things can't get any crazier ....
20:54 Thursday Challenge - Signs
04 Jan '06 - 21:32 Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now
16:17 Radio Killed The Radio Star
Waarom luister ik zelden of nooit radio? Meneer Westbroek slaat den nagel op den kop: "Radiostations draaien allemaal muziek volgens een vast format. Met als gevolg dat een generatie dj’s is opgegroeid die over van alles en nog wat zit te leuteren, behalve over de plaatjes die worden gedraaid."
03 Jan '06 - 19:01 Taxi Driver
14:48 Prince Of Darkness
Vroeger was ik altijd de pineut voor "statische electriciteit"-testjes bij Natuurkunde, omdat ik van die leuke dunne blonde haartjes heb die dan zo lekker makkelijk rechtop gaan staan. Ik was me er echter niet van bewust dat ik zodanig veel 'electriciteit' in m'n lijf heb dat daar spontaan de stroom van gaat uitvallen. Maar gisteren gebeurde dat toch echt toen ik even op bezoek ging bij Bananas. Ik was nog maar net binnen of alle stoppen knalden eruit. Mijn aanwezigheid veroorzaakte daar gewoon een heuse powersurge blijkbaar ...
02 Jan '06 - 08:36 Goede Voornemens
Niet op dag 1 van het nieuwe jaar bloggen; ben ik meteen van het verslavende "elke dag loggen" af, want dit jaar is nu toch al niet meer compleet ...
