Week 3

Facts at Random

I also have some random facts that I wanted to share with you (you know, in lack of an actual weblog consisting of a coherent story):

* Manchego likes beer, wine, tea and chocolate. He is clearly a child of mine.

* Then again, he does like to watch Jochem do the dishes (see below). I don't know what that's about.

* Staying serene, calm and zen-like in Tree Pose is very hard when your cat is attacking the one foot you're standing on. Om...

* I think Pasta may be pregnant. And has been for a while. How long does it take for a goldfish to give birth? Either way, Pesto is starting to look like a real fox. Or maybe they are lesbians.

* I think that I am pretty done with the theory of my graduate program. We have actually started rereading the theory that we have read before, so that now when I see a term such as "Krashen's i + 1", I actually know what it means. Scary... When do we get to teach already?!

* But what's really scary, is that I am actually starting to like the topic of my Linguistics thesis. I never meant for it to happen, I swear!

* I have been very annoyed lately. One friend even called me up to ask whether I was mad at her, when I wasn't. I think I need a week in Italy to recuperate.

* Jochem may be offered a job in Brussels by his uncle after he graduates. But I don't know how I feel about Belgium.

* Jochem is also thinking about opening a restaurant in Spain with his good friend Eyal. That sounds better. I just need to convince them to do it in Barcelona, which is way cool and where I'll surely find a job myself as a teacher.

* After a few months with me, one of the kids I tutor received a pass for an English test after receiving fails for, literally, years. I am very proud.

* And yet again my professors this quarter are chaotic, unorganized and unstructured. I don't understand...

* I gotta go. The baby needs me.

In Honor of the Graduate

First of all, congratulations to Mar who receives her Bachelor of Arts (BA) in English Language and Culture today from Utrecht University with a Minor in Language Education. I believe she had a rocky start during her first year but after a delay of only six months she now also has her undergraduate degree with good grades and even an 8 for her thesis. Thatagirl!!! :)

Second of all, you may remember that I orchestrated a little contest on this weblog a while ago, asking you what present I ended up buying my little brother Jordi for Christmas. Mar was the first (and the only) one to guess but she guessed right in going for the beanie, so I owed Mar a little poem. Unfortunately I was in the middle of finals and after those I kind of had forgotten about it, but eventually I remembered. I started scribbling and I believe the preliminary version was very well received, so I haven't altered it very much. Since I can't be at the actual ceremony itself because of work, I decided to delay posting the poem until today, as a little gift to my friend. So here goes:

I know a girl

Who's as unique as the most priceless pearl

When I first met her I didn't see

What good friends we were meant to be

I didn't know her very well

But according to Bic she was swell

Mag and I soon agreed

That this was a great girl indeed

Together we have seen it all

The good, the bad, the crazy and the know-it-all

It feels like the four of us keep each other sane

Perhaps the highpoint was that wonderful week in Spain

Mag is always happy in her mind

But Bic and I are of a different kind

We indulge in each other's cynical art

But our friend is the one with the biggest heart

One time when I was very sick

She brought me a homemade picnic

She also gave me vitamin pills and a thermomether

Too bad it didn't make me better

Besides being a caregiver

You can also have great fun with her

She likes the books, the movies, the good food and the drinks at the bar

Sometimes it's scary how similar we are

When we go out she can party until the curtain folds

Luckily we don't go that often because the three of us are getting old

Although we sometimes pretend to also be a great dancer

There is simply no way of keeping up with her

My girl also has the look

Anyone who is a voluntary brunette is cool in my book

With her great fashion style she often causes a scene

She's the only one of us who fits into skinny jeans

Because she's so sweet I sometimes believe

That she may be a bit naive

But I know that she's actually grown much

And now she's almost as bitter as the rest of us

She's one of my best friends by far

And her name is Mar

Manchego Update

Here are some more pictures of Manchego, 'voor de liefhebbers'! ;)

25

The other day I read on Anna's weblog about this list that has been circulating on Facebook. I really never log into my Facebook account anymore, so I was happy to find out about this list through Anna, and am now shamelessly stealing her blog and making my own, because, like Anna, I simply LOVE filling out useless things like this! :P The idea is to write down 25 random things about yourself, so here goes:

(1) I am afraid of scary movies. When I was about 12, my parents took my little brother and me to see Jurassic Park at the movies. I only watched the first 30 minutes and spent the rest of the time with my hood over my head, my eyes closed, my fingers in my ears, and crying. I wouldn't dare to watch the really scary movies like The Grudge, The Exorcist or, God forbid, Hostel, but whenever I do decide to watch a semi-scary movie, like The Ring or Saw, I always, always, regret it afterwards. Even when I saw Signs for the second time I was unable to sleep for a week.

(2) I have some serious obsessive compulsive habits. When locking my bike, I always check to make sure that the lock is secure three times, then I pull at it once, and then I check it again one more time. Only then can I be sure that the bike is actually locked. I also always check the furnace and the carbon dioxide meter three times before going to bed or before leaving the apartment to make sure that there is no gas leaking anywhere into our house.

(3) When people first meet me, they think I am from the U.S. because, apparently, I have some kind of American accent in my Dutch. I didn't try to create this. I am half Dutch and half Spanish and when I am with my family I speak Twents like the best of them.

(4) I am very judgemental. I used to think of it as honesty and then as a funny and quirky side of my personality, but lately I've been thinking that maybe it's just plain rude and insensitive. I kind of wish I would not be a bitter cynic but someone who is positive and always sees the best in people.

(5) When I was about 14 I wanted to be Geri from the Spice Girls and had matching clothes, shoes, purple make-up and blonde and purple hair to prove it. I also used to be a big fan of every bad boy and girl band out there, and must admit that I still kind of like that poppy music.

(6) I never wanted to get braces until I turned 17 and regained my senses, so I spent my entire first serious relationship and the first year and a half at University College Utrecht being a metal mouth. People often say I looked cute, but I think they're all lying.

(7) Due to the braces I now have a serious toothpick fetish. After eating ANYTHING I need to have a toothpick. I always carry them with me. It goes well with my lipbalm addiction which I've had since I was 11. Without lipbalm I really start acting crazy.

(8) I love Italy. Maybe even more than Spain (BLASPHEMY!!!).

(9) I am probably the only woman in the whole world who loves Ernest Hemingway. I LOVE him! We are involved. Come to think of it, besides the obvious British feminist writers like Jane Austen, Mary Shelly and Charlotte Bronte, my favorite writers are all white men like Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, F. Scott Fitzgerald, J.D. Salinger, John Osborne, Harold Pinter, Robert Louis Stevenson and Oscar Wilde. Mmm...

(10) I have somehow convinced my boyfriend that it's fair for him to cook, do the dishes, dry the dishes, and clean the kitchen.

(11) Then again, I am responsible for the budget, the groceries, the laundry and the dusting, so really, he should be grateful.

(12) I am trying to eat more spicy food so that I won't die of shock in India on our world trip. Surprisingly, I think I'm doing pretty well! In two years I should be able to eat the least spicy dishes. At least.

(13) I hate nail polish. And lipstick. It's too high maintenance for someone who's as precise as I am. But I did like it when I had red and pink toe nails in the summer.

(14) I seem to be unable not to plan. Or at least that's how other people perceive it. Although I am always busy with some kind of project, I don't think of it as planning, but as day dreaming in great, great detail.

(15) I don't understand why I can plan years ahead, but am still unable to start working on a paper until right before the deadline. Why do I need this pressure in order to write?

(16) I am writing my master's thesis on Social Linguistics and I have no idea why. I hate Linguistics.

(17) I think I'm quite arrogant when it comes to my academic accomplishments. I blame UC.

(18) I am one of those people who only has a handful of friends and doesn't want it any other way. I'm not good at small talk with people who are just acquaintances because I don't really care about meeting new people because I already have friends that are fabulous. So, I'm not as good in social situations as the boyfriend, who must be the king of networking your ass off. I must say I do much better at work, because I do care about education.

(19) This is going to sound very bad, but Jochem's studies bore me to death. I really don't care about Hotel Management! :S But it's nice to see someone so good be at the right place at the right time and really enjoying what he's doing.

(20) I seriously think that I'm not as flexible in certain yoga poses because my legs are much longer than my upper body. So the fact that I can't reach my feet with my hands while keeping my legs straight has really nothing to do with flexibility.

(21) I still absolutely love the soundtrack from The Holiday. Please download it and listen to it because Hans Zimmer is just plain genius. The song "Kisses and Cake" from the movie PS I Love You is also fantastic and my new favorite.

(22) I hate technology. I deal with computers and cell phones because I have to (and okay, with my iPod because it's cool), but I only get new things when my old things have stopped working altogether. I still miss my cell phone and my computer from when I was 17. I hate change.

(23) The other day Jochem and I totally altered our world trip because I simply HAD TO go to Cuba. Because there's a bunch of Hemingway stuff there.

(24) I hate reviews. DESPISE them even. I'm kind of glad that throughout everything I've not become some kind of slave to consumerism thinking that I HAVE TO see this movie and I HAVE TO listen to this music or I HAVE TO wear this outfit. I've always kind of trailed behind the trends and done my own thing; watch the movies I wanted to see even though they'd gotten bad reviews, listen to the music I like despite the fact that it's considered to be bad, and wear the clothes I like and feel comfortable in although it's out of style. It might sound silly, but it gives me a comforting sense of freedom. It must be so tiring to try to keep up with the trends.

(25) After almost seven years of studying I still type with just four fingers. I never learned to use all of them.

And now I'm tired! Time for lunch!

Day 2

Well, at least today I was able to get ready in 'only' an hour and fifteen minutes.

Straight Away

Manchego has arrived!!! :) While I was making the money yesterday from 4 to 6 PM, Jochem and my dad picked him up in Kampen, a tiny little village in the east of the Netherlands. My whole family came to visit: my dad, my mom, who had just come back from a week with her relatives in Spain, and the new homeowners: my little brother Jordi and his girlfriend Silvana. Jochem and I are absolutely in love with him. He is beautiful, sweet, and CRAZY! He has an unstoppable energy that is very funny, but also very tiring. It took me an hour and a half to get dressed today! I've already had to spray water on him three times because he was either taking a very close look at Pasta and Pesto that was making me very uncomfortable, or because he was creating havoc on our desk. We also had a really bad night's sleep, because he was sleeping with us in our bed but actually wants to sleep on top of you in some way. Now, Jochem and I are probably the most restless sleepers you'll ever meet. We keep moving from side to side every few minutes, and our bed is not that big, so we actually have our own blanket because we got so tired of fighting for the one blanket. So in one night Manchego has probably fallen off of us a dozen times, and one time he actually fell out of the bed. It's been pretty wild! Manchego is actually just as bad, because he was sleeping in my lap just now (which allows me to write this blog in the first place) and he just fell off! Luckily he climbed right back up and fell back to sleep, but now I'm kind of scared to wake him up, which I'll have to do soon because I need to have lunch before going to work. I'm just afraid he'll make more mess in my pristine apartment. Of course I know that having a kitten means having a mess, but right now I am in such denial. But I think my straightening days might be over real soon... Can you imagine having kids?!

Blue Monday

According to the news, it's Blue Monday today. You see, after years of pretending that this doesn't concern me in some way, I have started watching the news on a regular basis. Every morning I sit behind my laptop with my yogurt, Cruesli and coffee and watch the latest bulletin online. And apparently, the third Monday of January is the most depressing day of the year. Reasons: bad weather, being broke due to consumerism December and unsuccessful New Year's resolutions. I can add to that:

* Bad weather. The beautiful white landscape of snow, ice and sunny blue skies is gone and has been replaced with a landcape all too familiar to us Dutch people: grey skies, rain, wind, and the kind of temperature that is freezing when you sit still for five seconds together, but incredibly humid once you move. For example when biking to work where you end up arriving covered in sweat and, consequently, freezing the rest of the afternoon.
* School. You think you've got it all under control when you finish a 20+-page teaching project in less than a week. You think you've got more than enough time to finish you 3,000-word research essay on ethnicity in one week, which will result in a two-week break instead of a one-week break (both weeks will be spend on researching your linguistic master thesis, but okay). Then an out-of-control portfolio forces you to come up with a reading list (even though you teach language, not literature) with 36 books that must fit into some crazy guy's matrix of literary competence levels and you end up wasting an entire week on finishing it.
* Work. Your (male) superiors decide to replace a perfectly fine computer system with a new, flashy one. Except they don't do it over the Christmas break, but during work hours, and while it's not even working properly yet. Result: you spent hours trying to figure out a system that is just crap. The students' e-files can't be updated, appointments are suddenly lost, and here comes the best part: unregistered appointments means no salary.
* Health. My shoulder has been killing me and I feel flu-like. I feel nauseous and feverish and I can't get the scary image of a man staring at a woman through her window out of my head. I was just flipping through the channels when I saw this terrifying scene, which is basically my worst nightmare, on tv and this is why I don't watch scary movies! I have to be more careful of that damn tv.

But there are some great things going on here as well:

* Jochem and I are saving up a lot of money! It means being thrifty every second of every day to the point of annoyance and bailing out on exotic summer holidays, but a great world trip is definitely in the making (I REALLY want to go to Tasmania, the Galápagos Islands and Easter Island!).
* Yesterday Jochem and I went to the Vakantiebeurs with my parents and had such a wonderful time. We found great information for our world trip and my dad gave us both these great Indiana Jones hats. I also got a woolen hat from some unpronouncable country between Mongolia and China and I look damn good in it! We had Corona, Cava, Caipirinha, and amazing Thai food. We finished the day at our favorite sushi restaurant. What a great day! :)
* My fundraising is going really well. I planned to raise 37.50 euros for the WSPA, but I already have 75.77 euros. Thanks everyone!
* In one week and one day Jochem is picking up the newest member of our little family: Manchego.
* I got an 8 for my participation, an 8.3 for my presentation, and a 9 (!!!) for my essay for my American Studies class. I am in absolute awe. At least I kick ass at the things that drive me crazy.
* I discovered this weekend that the two other holes that I have in each ear are in fact not closed up, which means that I now have three earrings in each ear again. It came with some pain and a lot of skin irritation, but beauty is pain.
* My little brother and his girlfriend bought a house. An actual house. I am thrilled for them but suddenly feel very immature.

So, it's a tossup really. Only 13 hours, 38 minutes, and 20 twenty seconds till Tuesday.

Contest

Mar won! I gave my little brother a black and white G-STAR RAW beanie for Christmas. She guessed right and first and can expect a poem about her as soon as I can get my butt away from my computer and my literature teaching project.

2009

Happy New Year! Here is an impression of my New Year's Eve: