January

Janus Head - In Greek mythology, Janus was the god of gates, doors, doorways, beginnings and endings. His most prominent remnants in modern culture are his namesakes: the month of January, which begins the New Year, and the janitor, who is a caretaker of doors and halls. (from sublimethings blog)

That’s a good concept to start off with. And work on the God given day of Sunday. What a pity, I say. What will they do if they run out of the Sunday as well? Will they come up with a small day in between? The Somday. We’ll be forced to work on the Somday to make up for all the in-between-mistakes of IT or solve any other issue that cannot be dealt with on a normal working day… Anyhow, the good news about it was that we ended up the week with a team dinner at a Lebanese resto. Had some good mezza’s, though didn’t trust the raw lamb. Mistrust anything raw that made sound once and just sits on your plate! Or bring on more wine. That we did. Talked about not having a speech and about news on tv. Like on the 72-year old mother. I’m happy she’s still getting some. Water pipe was needed to keep the conversation going after this one. Then we remembered youthful drunkenness stories of party, disaster, joy and faith no one will notice what you’ve been doing one night before. Few of us standing went for some other beers at Leidseplein. Though the tram should have come, it didn’t. Every one else gave hope on it. I walked home for a change. Very refreshing, especially since I was off the next day.

I’m drumming my evenings away and building condition on Enter Sandman. It’s so damn difficult to keep up the toms going again and again throughout.. how does Lars do it?! He’s so strong and beautiful. I think I’m in love.

We’re having parents over for dinner. I’m not sure why we always end up having some conversation that embarrasses one of the persons at the table. It must be a family thing. Always one. Or the other. The beauty of it is that you almost never know whom the next one it’s going to be. Hopefully not you. In a starting family it’s always good you don’t think yet.. or you don’t realize, like when you’re 2. We went to visit friends who already have 2 children. One of 2 and one just born. The kids don’t even know what their parents are up to.. the one who can play, plays with the iron.. he could come over to my place – loads of ironing to do! Then he plays on with everything else that moves, while our friend shows us the newly acquired bed that moves around to accommodate different sex positions. We retire to the living room, my Russian friend is cooking again big time, it always feels like home and Sailorboy always feels like too much whiskey. Modern couples drink too much whiskey and red wine – hi and her respectively. It’s a couple disease. When you’re out in public you drink cocktails and beer. But we all know what you drank last night ;)

Monday is the Quiz Monday. Quiz Monday is the Monday you embarrass yourself in public for all the years you partied hard instead of reading a book or two. Unless you’re with your friend the Walking Encyclopedia. Then you really get a chance. The more smart friends you have, the better. So we actually got to the point where we were winning on general knowledge questions. Until we failed big time on the TMF music round. Then we realize we also need stupid friends who just dumbly watch the garbage on tv nowadays. We’ll do better next time!

The highlight of the month was shopping in Paris in between a training session and a train back home. Back home to Amsterdam, ‘cause I’ve celebrated 3 years of being here. That’s a lifetime! That’s something to remember.. about when I started this blog.. oh stop being such a sentimental fool! Just want to say: I’m still lovin’ it!!

To celebrate once more, I went to an Amsterdam Klezmer Band concert. Brilliant Dutch music with a Jewish twist and a hoopla-hoopla feeling swarming around ‘til your clothes get wet. The orchestra was so close to us and their shiny shoes so kitschy, we were one big family and a Balkan-Western nation. Good tunes, good vibes! I want more!

The Real Stamppot

Between some friendly visits of lady friends, one busy with Racoon and the other with putting headsets to her belly for the child to understand strategic thinking while listening to Beethoven, we went to eat the real thing.

The real Dutch food is like this: you bake meat in the oven for hours and hours or just put your juiciest sausage on top of mashed boerenkool.

Crystal clear, ain't it??!!

Until you've eaten that, you ain't Dutch.

And if you ain't Dutch, you ain't much!

So Sailorboy's mama, the Princess Cook, she just pulled it out on us and this gave like the best childhood-house-warmth feeling one could ever get!

It touched us so deep in the stomach, we needed to recover with guts! Monopoly's the game! Damn, I suck! I go out first! and the News Madonna wins the prize of the day! envy with sausage's my name!!

A Shopping Mall and a Round Table

After walking up and down the fancy furniture shopping mall, we decided the hundreds tables we’ve seen weren’t good enough, small enough but at the same time big enough, nice colour enough, cheap enough but stylish enough to fit in. We needed a good table.

But what’s better than your friends’ table?! So we went to The Hague to visit my uncle. We had a good dinner, nice times at Romanian tv, where sailorboy found out that dolce vita means sweet cow if you say it in the same way in Romanian. Next to this, we had a good laugh at folk songs telly. That was a good one! Brilliant! We then came down to see the table-a Alberto, eh! Our gooda frienda, ze Itaaaliaan, eh!! He left behind this round nice table and chairs, so we rolled out the table to the train. We amazingly fit in with only few remarks from the other passengers and then installed it in the privacy of our own homes. This also completed our hunt for furniture in da house. Yes yes yo!!

Oh yeah, it only cost us another way to The Hague. First we made a stop in Abcoude for the lift-up car. Sailorboy confident driving the car, then took off with the chairs and I enjoyed some .ro quality time with my family.

Quiet weekend and Dodensherdenking

Needed to catch up with my pregnant hot mamma girlfriend, so got to The Hague. We had traditional chips and delicious salad to go, more beers, waiting forward to the baby. Preparations were being done, from baby’s room to clothes, diapers bin, baby bath, toys and cradle. Everything’s in da house..

I move on to see my uncle and spend good family time together. We have some laughs and catch up, think about all the housy things done and what else to improve. Think about the future and the past, talk about politics and football, tv shows and popularity, news and job descriptions, uni and Dutch language. The night just passes by and I need to go back home next thing next day…

A friend’s visiting. I need to clean up the house a bit before Nicole thinks that’s a mess. I take care of it and prepare to entertain her. We go see the city, take some natural tours. Unhappily I need to be again in the Dam Square – the top of the tourism, the summit of the most famous and disgusting place in Amsterdam, the centre of the unknown-once, then it all revolves around it, so I made it my purpose to try to avoid the Dam Square for as long as I live in the Netherlands.

Except for one occasion. Next day – Dodensherdenking – remembrance of the dead, actually the people who died during the 2nd Word War. [after some normal saying good-bye to my friend, walking her to the bus, doing a jog in the park, and basically run to get there in time] The Queen was there, the Royal family was there, so I was finally able to see them live – from distance. The personal and other guards, nice people, even making fun, authorities, other known and unknown people. In the thousands of people covering all the grand surface of the Dam Square, there was one moment of silence. It gives you goose skin, it’s so damn impressive you didn’t feel nothing like it!! And I was there, holding my breath…