Sustain your energy

I think with the spring cleaning came also the idea of cleaning up the inside - not quite a detox, more like revisiting old forgotten ideas and initiatives. So, once upon a time I wanted to make an exhibition on Europe (taking pictures of things that contain the word Europe in their name - such as EuropCar, Europa Bank and many many others). I never got round to it. Then I started a blog on adaptation to climate change. Passionate as I still am about the adaptation to climate change, I have totally neglected my blog. I also wanted to learn how to play the piano. And then the guitar. But I hve not done either.
People say you have to force yourself to do something for 100 days, every day, and then it will become a habit. My problem with doing something for 100 days in order for it to become a habit is that if I do X, there are millions of other things I may want to do in that time, but I am not doing those things, because my habit now is X. And we can only fit a limited anount of habits into our 24hrs per day, I am afraid. So how should one convince him/herself that X is really important and a worthwhile investment of our time and should make it a habit and sustain the energy and passion for it?
I am asking this now as I have caught myself having a bunch of relatievly new habits and I am still not convinced I want to keep them. But they might come in handy in the longer term. So, carpe diem or let´s get organized?

Just beacause I'm nice, don't assume I'm dumb

This is the title of an article in the Harvard Business Journal from February 2009. I found it yesterday and realized how true, yet odd it is, that being nice (or at least trying) makes one look harmless, too sweet and naive, and not necessarily worth being promoted or listened to. Once we meet somebody, we assess them - and we see warmth and competence as inversely related. So if somebody sees you as competent, they won't expect you to offer them a coffee at the office when you make yourself one.
I wonder why that is so. In my ultimate frustration I can just say they are rude and lack good social education and humility. Other call them competent.
Suit yourself. I just feel very motivated now to prove this stereotype wrong. There are smart and beautiful blond women, too. Let's get over our outdated paradigms!!!
Thank you :-)

ACT Responsible

I love ads. Creative ones. And it frustrates me to see on tv how it's "scientifically" proven that one one cheese is better than the other. They are so full of preservatives, anyways. So, recently I came across ACT Responsible, which stands for Advertising Community Together. The ads they make are creative, fun, and for a purpose. Just check them out at http://www.adforum.com/affiliates/creative_archive/2007/ACT/simglist.asp

So that what?

As anybody else, I also get sometimes very stuck in loops of dreaming and giving up. But in order to make things happen, one has to get over the "passive" loops and move into action. Which I fail to do most of the time :-) But every now and then I realize there are simple formulas out there that could help, such as the one I just read in Dutch recently. So, once you have an idea and you what to make it happen and asked yourself the question "So that what?" - e.g. I want to make XY happen in order to impact my community in ABC way - you can develop your project around the 7 (Dutch) Ds:
Dromen - Dream
Denken - Think
Durven - Dare
Doen - Do
Doorgaan - Keep on doing
Delen - Divide
Doorgeven - Pass on
This sounds like it can ensure the decentralised continuity and growth of truly beneficial projects. Such as the Global Oneness Project. More on this later :-)

Long time no write

... no time.
Time spent on things I wish I actually did not spend time on. Many new creative ideas. Nothing is materializing. And the world goes round! Then times come when you meet those who are dear to you and have a great time together, but do not really have the space to have longer conversations with clearer conclusions. Then you realize there are unfinished projects at work, then you realize that you aren't devoting enough time to your home, your food, your health, basically nothing around you gets the attention it deserves. Step on the break. No effect.
Sleep less. Works, but productivity goes down. Call your mum, catch up with friends, clarify old misunderstandings, plan you summer holiday, plant a tree, build your community...oops, forgot to stay in touch with friends again.
What is so wrong with us?
Oh, adopt a child on distance since you do not have the time to go there ant build a village for them and provide them with safe drinking water....oooh, the summer is here, time to go out with friends. I still haven't finished the book I started reading months ago, even though it's one of the greatest books I ever came across. I should not be updating my blog right now but
1) finishing a proposal
2) taking a shower
3) cleaning the apartment
4) trying to catch up with friends
5) reading about environmental finance
6) enjoying the first spring sun
7) figuring out what to cook for friends who are coming over for dinner tomorrow
8) sewing my boyfriend's socks (oh, how ashamed I am when he takes his shoes off ....)
9) my back hurts, I should go to the gym. skipped yoga class on Wednesday again....
What a circle of should do, need to do, want to do...and I should also listen to the podcasts of getting things done. But I am ...not always up to noise. Sounds. I just like silence. And lots of light. And I like to see the end of me task list. I guess for that I should fundamentally restructure my life and go to a farm and be energy independent, have a bunch of solar panels, lots of flowers, a figue tree and a couple of orange trees, have a distant view of the sea and big piano that I want to learn to play and get down to it.
Great dreams!
Daring ones. And I hope somewhat positive ones. I am willing to share them. Would you like to join?

Sustainability twisted

So the other day I paid a visit to my former employer. I was walking down the corridor, greeting acquaintances and new recruits. I have noticed that they were largely ladies in the office. After all, this is an NGO. At some point I had to realize that out of the 20 women I have seen, 3 were pregnant. Hm, I thought to myself, in this place they must have an excellent maternal leave policy. I could not help it but mention to the HR director. Right when I did so a girl who has just started working gave me a laugh. She said:"You wish, when I started I had to sign a paper stating that I am not planning to have a child in the next two years!" I looked at the HR director with dibelief, saying: "I had no idea that an NGO promoting sustainability in the world can offer such unfair labour conditions. This is unsustainable." She smiled back at me saying:"And do you think it is sustainable for me to keep chasing talented young people and once they start working here they just go on maternal leave? Well, I do not think my labour conditions would be sustainable if I had to constantly keep recruiting new people."
I have to admit, she had a point. It is interesting how sometimes the individual sustainability (fair labour conditions of the HR director) go against the sustainability of the bigger unit (general labout conditions at the organisation). Hm...I guess eventually more men may start working at this NGO.

Wants and Needs

The entire science of marketing is set up to satisfy our needs, but also our wants. To turn our wants into perceived needs. To come up with something that we were perfectly happy without and first turn in into a desire and ultimately make us believe that we cannot go on without it.
The financial crisis has numerous negative sides, no doubt about it. People losing their homes, jobs, their future...many people are faced with conditions that they may have not thought would ever be possible. When one has to give up their lifestyle, they have to revisit the deeper self and re-evaluate the values, the needs and desires. It is possible that many of us will realize that there are many things we got used to using, but ultimately, they were not our needs. Simply our desires. A Magnum Temptation cannot qualify as a need. Food and drinking water does. As long as not everybody on the planet has access to it, why are we constantly coming up with more "potentially desired" products and turning our back to those who pay the price of our lifestyle?
I have to admit, that Magnum Temptation does taste great... Could it turn into a perceived need? Is the financial crisis the right time to revisit our definitions of wants and needs?

What we say - What we feel - What we do

I am using this picture even though I probably should not, as it is not mine. I feel bad, but I still do it. I say (write) the truth, because I think by lying I could get into much more trouble. What I do, feel and say are totally not aligned. I hope the holy tantric man in the picture is better off in this case. Making music is a much more enriching experience than talking. Believes me, who cannot play any instrument.
So anyways, the point is that sometimes we do things with a good intention, but it does not come across that well. At other occasions, we have the best talk, but simply would not move to action. And then there are the times when we say what we feel and we do it and we feel great about it. I would have to examine my memory a bit to discover when was the last time that happened, since more recent and not so positive experiences are currently obscuring my view (memory) of my glorious moments in the past ;-)
Anyways, happy Valentine's day to everybody!!!
Today is however Friday the 13th and somehow I feel it ...

Love is the new money

What a ridiculous comment, no? I saw it in the newspaper this morning and thought, how pathetic. And then I thought of the value of love and the value of money. And their measurability (which caused a bit of a headache since money is much easier to measure than love).
So then I looked at it again: Love is the new money.
Money used to have a value (an agreed one). Love has an absolute value. Love is a safe bet. Real, authentic, caring, connected LOVE. It's like an alternative currency that will never lose its value. Love (when money looses out on its importance) is becoming the new money. The sentence in itself suggests a paradigm shift.
A radical change. It seems that impatient idelists, like myself, wait every day for the paradigm shift. And by the way, if you allocate money with love, there would be no global South. Neither global North. Hmmm...there you go, food for thought

Creativity and Innovation

Did you know that 2009 is the European Year of Creativity and Innovation? Well, now you know :-) The official ceremony marking the commencement of this year took place in Brussels where at Vienna Vegetable Orchestra gave a concert (http://www.gemueseorchester.org/). It is a worthwhile experience to listen to a small piece by them on youtube.
I like this initiative because it comes across as a fresh approach to celebrating nature. Not only does vegetable feed us, but it provides us with leisure, with beauty. I guess most musical instruments were inspired by vegetables. And fruits. And animals. All the natural things surrounding us. It's a "back to the roots 21st century edition". It's creative and innovative, yet not tech. It's elegant, it's simple, it's natural....I am just not sure the artists eat the vegetable after they paly music on it...even if they don't they have my vote!

Professions

It is interesting to see how over time some professions disappear (the traditional hand labor) and others take their place (mainly in the service industry). Imagine somebody having worked at the counter giving our refunds for returned bottles in the grocery store. Just think about working there for years, knowing your customers by name, being part of the "grocery store community". Then one day they bring in the machines that sort the bottles and print receipts that allow your for a discount at the cashier. The person who worked at the counter is not needed any more. A machine has replaced him. Every day new machines seem to be taking jobs over from humans. I have to admit the washing machine is nice, I do not mind not having to wash the clothes in a river by hand. Machines are supposed to make our lives easier. To allow us to do other things that we otherwise would not have time for. But to what extent to they make us feel useless and superfluous and in the end just make us spend more time staring at the TV/PC screen and indeed be passive and superfluous in some respect?

New Year's Resolution

So, another year is over. This was a pretty exciting one for me. My first real job, my professional and personal learning, living happily with my boyfriend, being surrounded by great people, traveling a bit, having no REAL concerns in life.... Except for the question marks around the future. But those we always have, right?
Actually, all I wanted was to enter 2009 without any due to-dos from 2008. I think it worked quite well. But in order to maintain continuity, of course there were many things overlapping from 2008 to 2009.
This year I would like to read more, do more cultural stuff, speak less and learn to give and receive more and better feedback. And figure out how to bring "connectedness" to life in everything I do. I may need some guidance on this front.
How about you?

Learning Dutch

This post serves 2 purposes:
1) I can finally show off that I started taking Dutch classes - all for free, as my Inburgerings Cursus (I am going to be "citizenned")
2) Share a thought I had on Saturday when I was all excited to do my homework. So, there was this exercise in which I had to put the verb in particular form. One of them said: Ik ben een sigaret aan het roken. (I am smoking a cigarette.) So I smiled to myself. And then I realized, that in most language books the exercises are always politically correct and straightforward. I thought making me write a sentence about me smoking and me not being a smoker is maybe a bit of a stretch. And then I thought, how authentic it is from the authors of the book to use this sentence. And also, why is it that most exercises are not like this. That they are politically correct? Why is it that we want to show a great and noble and "non-smoking" image of ourselves when creating a book for foreigners who want to learn our language? Once they learn it, they're going to find out anyway what we really stand for... Is is hypocrisy or are we trying to live up to the image we want others to have of us?
I hope to know more by the end of the second book...

Guerilla Art Kit

I got this cool present from some frineds of mine, it's called Guerilla Art Kit - it's about making your environment nicer, greener, better and help others feel good in the greyness of everydays. You can make personal presents for others, spend time thinking about them and creating something for them. Not as convenient as Xlas shopping last minute at the mall, but I hope it communicates a different message to those you care about. Just like sending Xmas cards :-)

Health Insurance Company

So, as you probably know, health insurance rules are different in each EU Member State. Insurance companies' immunity and persistance makes moving around Europe sometimes hell. In some countries you have a public insurance, elsewhere a compulsory privave one and in other countries a combination of the two. You have to subscribe to them at different ages in each country and better bear in mind your (un)employment status as well as length of stay in the given country.
Yesterday I picked up the phone, ready to call my local health insurance and ask them to issue a confirmation of my insurance that will allow me to terminate my contract with the public insurer in another country. I was at unease, not wanting to go throught the whole explanation and getting the response "Why do you people move around so much". After all, one of these years (was it 2006?) was the European Year of Mobility, and yes, there are plenty of low cost airlines, only bureaucracy makes life hell at any destination. I just want a piece of paper with a stamp and signature on it.
So with these not so pink thoughts in my mind, I picked up the phone and dialled a number I found on the insurance company's website (I was sure they would transfer me 20 times before anybody will listen to me).
The phone rang on the other end and somebody (!) picked up after 2 rings. This person was not only real, but also fluent in English. After a 10 second short talk I shared my request with the gentleman on the other end of the line. He listened and asked for my postal code and house number. After he identified me, he said I can expect the English version of the requested document in 2-3 working days at my home address. I thanked him, still in disbelief, and hung up.
What has just happened? A massive insurance company finally got the message through to its employees: Customer first? Or was this person new at his job and did not have the longing to leave, yet? Or was he just kidding me...
I cannot be sure as the document has not arrived, yet. But I am hopeful. And still, laughing at myself as all my negative energy and preparation for war was in vain. At least I hope so :-)

A beautiful Sunday

Since today was an unusually beautiful day in Amsterdam, we went to the Amsterdam forest to a goat farm. I know its terrible, but since I lived all my life in cities, I never really had the chance to feed baby goats - and they are so sweet http://www.geitenboerderij.nl/.
We also cheered for some marathon runners (today was the Amsterdam Marathon day) on the way home and I was thinking this day could not get any better.
Until I got home and turned on CNN where apart from talking about Joe the Plimber - who by the way scares me with his attitude - I heard Colin Powel just endorsed Barack Obama. Wow! It was not really about me supporting Obama, more about finally thinking outside the box and not doing as one is expected to! My respect to Colin!
And after all this excitement, there's still a good book, a chat with friends and a delicious dinner awaiting me. What more on Earth could one wish for?

The Economist Newsletter

The Economist has always proved to be a reliable source of information on the world out there. I have subscribed to the free weekly newsletter quite some time ago and for some strange reason have not read it for almost a year now. Until tonight. I thought it provides synthesized, relevant information. And indeed, it does. Only this time, in the "Economy" section it did not talk about mergers and new businesses but about central banks saving the severely limping privately owned banks throughout the world. Indeed, what happened to capitalism and market forces...
Strange times...you can bid for Iceland on eBay...and Joerg Haider died in a car accident. Rather turbulent...but surprising?

Depression

I am so happy these days! I would say happiness stands in the way of reflection and deep thinking, but it brings positive thoughts, smiles and good intention to the surface. So I am happy about being happy. Even the sun is shining today!
When you feel down, you question everything, you feel like floating in uncertainty, not seeing the way out. Once you're happy you ask why would you be looking for a way out...a way out from where? To where?
And ulitmately, I think feeling happy is sometimes a matter of choice to ALWAYS LOOK AT THE BRIGHT SIDE OF LIFE :-)
Cheers!

Goosebumps

First of all, I have heard of the great software called Thinking Rock that can capture and structure your ideas - I might get one of those if my mind lets me down many more times!
So, goosebumps: I have realized yesterday what when my team mates were writing with a particular marker on paper, I got the goosebumps big time. But when it was my turn to write, the marker made the exact same sound, but I did not mind. Another proof of how we are more tolerant with ourselves. Or maybe it is the proof of something else, but I do not know so if you know a shrink who has a good explanation, get him to write a comment. Cheers!

The Coercive Power of Good

Most of us know of people who do not do only good things to the planet or the society. People who have a vision that disregards certain parts of the system. It even seems that most people are prevailingly destructive. But somehow the system still sticks together. Somehow we are still trying to be nice to each other, to think positive, to be positive. In my view, that means that good prevails all that is not good. And that nothing is lost, even if sometimes things look hopeless.
So I feel happy, don't you?

Brilliant Idea

Last night before going to sleep I had this brilliant idea! And then I fell asleep. Since then, I do not remember the brilliant idea. They say if something is really important, it comes back to your mind. Well, this idea is still out there. Maybe it was brilliant but not so important? It would be cool to have a camera to take pictures of ideas. Then you just click and and save it and dial back to it any time you feel like it. Now writing the idea down is sometimes more difficult, as it normally has a context which can be rather time consuming to capture in words. That is why my idea escaped and may never come back to me.
But I have also noticed, that some of my ideas of which I think are really innovative and creative have already been thought of by someone else and there is an entire website, library, etc. written about it. But to me the ideas seem so great - only until I discover that I am not the original author of them...

Focusing

I read the other day that "focus is leadership". So true. If you pay attention to something, especially if you notice small details and remember them, you rule! Once someone told me at an interview not to use "yeah" again. And I really listened to this comment and did not use it again. I did not get the job - apparently I was too good since I learnt after one reminder.
But this is a tiny example. If you remember people's concerns, hobbies, family members' names etc. and ask about them, they will consider you a caring, nice person and will listen to you. Dealing with people who believe you care seems like a rewarding activity.
Focusing on small bits of information also helps us navigate in this world, too. But one only true active listening, and not mere downloading enables one to focus in as well as see the broad picture, the context of a conversation.

On Infrastructure

So we have roads. Airlines. We are mobile. And we have mobile phones. These things are supposed to connect us. Just like Facebook and LinkedIn.
And we have personal goals and clear opinions. We know for ourselves what we want and we do not want others to "manipulate" or "brainwash" us, or to influence our individual decisoin-making process in any way. So we consciously gather only information WE want to have, not the whole picture. This is called downloading. Individualised, disconnected pieces of information.
Now once set set out on our journey on our infrastructure to not just arrive at a particular (geographical) point, but also learn to live the journey, to talk to people and to listen to what they have to say, maybe we'll learn listening. And we'll phase out donwloading.
There is so much knowledge in this world, all around us. We should just learn to listen to it and use the infrastucture to mutual enrichment and to increase the quality of our lives...we have added quite a few years to our life, now it's time to start adding life to our years, maybe.

On admiring people

Role models are really important to me. But what happens most of the time is that when one discovers an admirable person he/she tends to look up to him/her without conditions. Once the admired person becomes better known to the admirer, certain imperfections tend to surface. Then comes the disappointment - the admired person is not worth being followed any more. After some time, comes acceptance of the fact that the admired person is just a human being and thus it is just normal for him/her to act human. And humans are not perfect, we all know that. But every now and then we get hooked in the perfection loop and want to discover a person without faults.
Worse than that, this world seems to be also short of authentic people. And even if we all have faults, at least some of us really try to be authentic. Authentic people - with faults - are the ones I really find admirable. They help me reflect on my actions, to try harder to be an honest human being with respect for my environment and community, to live according to some values and discipline. To try to be authentic! Until I end up in yet another perfection loop...

I'm part of it now

I have been trying to resist Facebook for a long time. I am on IWIW (a Hungarian network) and on Linked In, but I have always avoided Facebook. Until one day I gave in to collective pressure and started virtual small talks and socialisation. It is actually not as overwhelming as I thought! And it's nice to find friends from high school and university! I hope they are all doing well, after all it seems a bit too much to send everyone a separate email!
So, let us engage in meaningful conversations online that will hopefully be followed by actions...

Home

Where do you feel at home? I would like to say that I feel at home on my blog. In my diary. Anywhere drinking a glass of red wine in the company of great people. I guess it is true. But I also feel attached to geographic locations. Don't you? A location has a weather, culture, architecture, feeling, people...so much! I am stretching the limits of where I feel at home...I would like to feel at home anywhere in Europe. Sometimes it is not that easy though, as we have often commitments in the place we were born, raised, educated and offered other experiences. We are only visitors in this world, but we get so attached to it. Strange. Why do we do that?

What matters more

This is a transparent bottle, really. But if you look further, to the inside, you find a little magic in there. Now if the bottle was dirty or scratched from the outside, that would make it somewhat harder to appreciate the beauty residing inside of it. Now imagine the bottle as clean as it is, with nothing inside. Then this bottle would not be particularly interesting, would it?
I guess both matter: the outside and the inside. In my humble opinion, the inside matters more. But this is the reflection of my individual taste. The inside of people (their soul), of food and drinks (the taste), of any place we go (the inner experience) always matters more to me than the outside.
But saying that the outside is negligible would be a blunt lie, too. We just have to find a healthy balance...I am still looking :-)

Buzz of life

Everyone's life is buzzing. Elections here, earthquakes there, charitable activities....anyway, I was thinking: without having never really been there: ever heard of Professor Stephen Hawking? One of the most outstanding scientists since Einstein, beyond doubt. But there's more to him than knowledge: there's strength! And if you don't know him yet, make sure you find out more...it will be a very rewarding learning experience - and multidisciplinary!

Spring

when you smell the change, subtle and soft....and you feel there is new life flowing in your veins...and sometimes you do not even know why, but you slow down your pace, smile at a stranger...that is when spring starts. A hope for new beginnings, of cleaning the dust left behind by winter, a feeling of awakening euphoria...SPRING!!! And on top of that there are brand new duck families on the canals....

Who is in charge?

Our body is a fantastic...it tells us all kinds of stuff about how it feels and what it needs. But it does not tell us when we have already had enough food (or it does, but you really have to listen). So, I learnt today, that we really have to respect it and pay attention to it. Just love it a little more and train it!
Well, one things is to talk, let's see if I ever move to action!

Forever

This picture is from Joseph Breitenbach. I am not sure why it is called Forever. Nevertheless, it is. What is forever? We human beings pretend that we'll be around forever. But we won't. I wonder, if you knew you'd die soon, why would you fight for a comfortable life instead of testing your limits and seizing the day? If you look around, the luxury we live in is build and created because we think we'll be around forever to benefit from it.

How many people die every day. And more are born. There are billions of us. Many billions of us already died and the world still goes on. Millions of people are in this world who are lost, lonely, hurt, or those who have brilliant ideas but cannot break through. Our existence is so insignificant if we lose our belonging to a context, a system, a network - to nature, to emotional sanity and honesty to ourselves and others.

Still our existence still has a meaning. In its modest way. And that is what we should be grateful for and rediscover ... ourselves. A brave new world would emerge if we'd finally stop pretending so much, huh?

We look so alike...but we aren't

Sometimes I find it striking how all human beings look alike. Of course, we are the same species. But what is more interesting than our similar appearance is how different we are underneath. When you look at a person, you can guess if the person is happy or sad, or if the person is dull or charismatic. But there is a lot more to it than that. Imagine, even parents and children have very different personalities and sometimes even values. On the surface, they look alike, but below the surface... one may save lives every day as a doctor whereas the other feels nausea from the sight of blood. One looks sure of himself and the other is shy, yet has a profound soul and mind. But all these qualities take time to reveal. It is exciting. Some find it extremely boring to talk about these kinds of things and look into exact sciences or just have to devote all their energy to survive from one day to another.

And on top of it all, depending on the circumstances one grows up in, "good" and "bad" differ according to culture. We are very complex beings.
On the other hand we all are determined by the pursuit of happiness. That's a thing we all have in common. And one more thing: the source of happiness is always inside of us. Hidden in our complex existence.

Fascinating people!

It's a dark picture, I know. This is Meky Zbirka, the all time favourite Slovak "soft rock" singer. He was the ultimate hit of the 80's and gave a concert just a few days ago in Brussels. Among others he sang John Lennon's anthem, "Imagine". It's always uplifting to listen to it...
Por o caso (by the way) on the day of the concert I went to a conference on mobility/migration in Europe. And there I saw a quote saying "The more we share, the more we have!". What wonderful thought...even though lately we are not good at sharing at all...
So this is a message to those who care, who look for inspiration and who believe that they can make a difference.
Listen to "Imagine" and try to share something with a stranger today!
It's a start :-)

The power of our brains

Have you realized that the "truth" we percieve to be out there, our "reality" is created in our brains through the limitations and norms we impose on ourselves?

It is amazing how even neighbours and siblings live in different realities....

That is why it reveals so much about this world when you just observe the others, when you look outside the window of the moving bus and try to picture yourself in the situation of a bypasser. I am amazed.

And it teaches you a lot, too!

About literature and the state of my soulbird

I have a bird in my soul. But you also do. Have you noticed? If not, just try to listen to something isnide of you and maybe you'll discover him. If it seems hard but you speak German, look up the poem called Der Seelenvogel by Michael Snunit, Na'ama Golomb. Maybe that will wake your soulbird up.
So, once he's awake, you'll feel some things differently. You'll feel the soulbird's mood. Especially when you are under emotional shocks.
Since I like reading, novels that is, my soulbird reacts to the morals of the books I read. I have noticed, that just like in visual arts, it is not the style and technique of writing any more that makes a piece of literature good (even though that matters, too), but the ideas. How daring the book is, how shockingly do the protagonists behave.
Letely I was reading about boys being raped, about a wife having breast cancer and dying from it whereas her husband falls in love with someone else. And we all know true stories of adultery, lies and thieves from our own surrounding. So it is not so hard to imagine, that whatever we read in the books, is actually going on around us and we just have been oblivious to it.

And that is when my soulbird is most confused.

I believe in things changing, in progress, in people being able to be honest and reliable and truthful. I believe that what we feel now, just after we passed quarter of a century of age, is the truth we accept and according to which we will live. Or are least I really would like it to be true.
I would like to comfort those who love me and care about me. I would like to be there for them.
Am I lying to myself?

Overpowered

like exploding from energy or like given too much power?
Is either of them any good?
Still, right now I would like to feel both. But somehow it feels that often we are not in control and someone has drained our energy. Maybe it is a good idea to start doing yoga. The hatha version :-)
Happy New Year to everyone! I got this numerical picture from http://ideiasenlatadas.blogspot.com/. This is the ad spot!

If travelling was compulsory

We all know that civil aviation contributes to the increase of greenhouse-gas emissions. We all like travelling. An increasing number of us is aware of the fact that travelling by air is not environmentally friendly but still, we just love travelling.

But no one really forces us to travel. On the other hand, we all have to pay taxes, but we are not too excited about it. We had to go to school when we were kids and most of us were not crazy about it. We have to obey our boss/parents, even if we don't agree with them. Most of the things that are compulsory are not our hobbies.

So, does this mean that if travelling by air was compulsory, we would prefer taking the train, boat or bus?

I wonder...

Long busride

Even though Amsterdam and Brussels are relatively close, a busride between the two cities takes four hours. And last night I had the honour of sitting next to an Erasmus Mundus student from Shanghai, China. So I thought this was a wonderful opportunity to ask a Chinese person how they see us, Europeans. And to my surprise, she said: Europeans are slow.
And I was thinking all these years that we live in a crazy rat race, an inhuman stress. Apparently, everything is relative.
Are we missing out on an opportunity if we are seen from the outside as slow? Should we speed up?
I guess all coins have two sides....

What else is there to add?

Fashion

What is fashion about? I guess it should be about being appealing to the person who we would like to show interest in us. Or at least that was the initial idea. But not that I walk on the street, I look at women and judge their appearence, like "i'd kill for that bag". And that particular person with the killer bag, boots, earrings and other apparel items or accessories probably chose it knowing that other women would give them jealous looks. This however does not mean that I am the person who should become interested in her. Just that fashion is not oriented at attracting potential partners any more. But at attracting jealous looks from other women (or men). And spending way too much money on not so important things.
It works! ;-)

The golden rule

i guess there are several of them. The one I heard today from a particular Mister from Social Platform (http://www.socialplatform.org/) was the following:
The one with the gold sets the rules.
I might live in a dreamworld, which is not healthy at my age, but I find this golden rule hard to accept.
Or at least I would say, Hard work brings you gold and with gold you'll set the rules.
That gives me at least a little hope.
Call me naive if you like.

Self-branding

I saw an article in the Time magazine yestarday. It said that Facebook os good for nothing but self-branding in the end. I guess having a blog is pretty much the same! Sorry, I still hope it serves as an inspiration for others to start their own blog and say something interesting. It's a way of communicating with others, a very simple, but efficient one!
Anyways, I would like to invite anyone to comment on this. It is good to know what you might think of the things you find in this blog.
I guess I am self-branding, but hopefully I also say sometimes something useful! :-)

Belarus

What do you know about Belarus? Well, Idon't know much about the country, only that Lukashenka is the president and that the opposition does not have much power. Check out www.salidarnasc.org (and click on the EN button) on more opposition info. Many say the situation is not that bad there. I don't know. All I know that I saw this wonderful yound lady who said when asked about her family's view on her opposition to the government: I only have a husband. But it's hard. We cannot have children, we don't know who'll go first to jail.

Need more?

Way better than watching TV

It is so wonderful to sit by t he sea and look for Morocco on the other side. Well' it's too far to see and we tend to pretend that it's not too close. If you would like to acknoweldge that Northern Africa reserves more attention, visit http://www.kingbaudouinfoundation.org/ for a start. And watching the sea anyway has a tranquilising effect :-)

Chocolate

Iguess everyone knows what is the big attraction of Brussels. It's Chocolate, of course! And the big attraction of Amsterdam? Weed, of course. Since I have had the opportunity to visit both cities, I happened to compare them on their attractions. And I have to admit, the winner is Brussels. From a pure marketing point of view: weed is attractive for a smaller amonut of people than chocolate. Not everyone who goes to Amsterdam goes to a coffee shop. But I have not heard of anyone coming to Brussels and not visiting some fine chocolatiers. Also, whereas weed is an issue that is not supported by all Dutch, I have never met a Belgian complaining about the silly tourists "eating our chocolate". Basically, Chocolate is a less controversial topic and in the end, it brings more money even if just because of the nr of people buying it. And if you have been to Brussels, you probably know that you rarely get away with paying less than 10 Euros...

Lost in Brussels! Or lost in Europe?

Last weekend I was walking with Patricia around in Brussels.

And I got lost soooo many times. And she made me promise I would put this picture on my blog.

So here it comes! But I was thinking if this could be a metaphor for being lost in Europe. Well, not for me. I am at home in Europe and believe I know my way around. There is still a lot to learn, but I am a EUphoric person. Therefore, the idea of a Europe that is in many ways united makes me smile with content.

For its values should not be set but earnt from its citizens. For its beauty and diversity continue to persist. And that is good!And that's why there is a future to it. And that's what I would like to be a part of!

Boycott

Fascinating and vast and wonderful and rich the country I have on my mind may be, I shall try to boycott its products for one entire year. (I have not bought anything from there this month so I'll count the end of the year for the end of next September.)
It's not agianst that country. It's againt my consumerism.
It's to make sure that I feel good about the things I purchase.
Producers of the world, please provide enough goods to avoid the absence of choice for consumers (in terms of the country of origin of a given good). After this, I will buy products from that country only for one entire month, I promise!
Is that a deal?

Shoe story

I have realised, that not only did the heel of my boot break off last Friday, but the last time I started a new job (in Amsterdam), I wore new shoes on the first day and they completely rubbed of the skin of the back of my heel on the way to work. So I started my new job back then barefoot. Maybe there is something about shoes on the first day in a new job...what do you think?

Positive news

well, I don't know how you feel about it, but sometimes I wish news were not so negative. So sad and frustrating. So I found this gentleman, Mr. Boufford, who has a positive newsblog at http://mrpositive.blogspot.com/. Check it out! Even though he tends to be happy about profits and other financial news (which I am not that extremely excited about if I do not like the overall policy of the given organization), he does put things in a nice and promising way. I am not sure if he has any competitiors, so if you are looking for a market niche, maybe you could feel positively challenged about providing even more positive news to the rest of the human race!

Clash of civilisations

So I went to church today after a rather long time. Do you know the book by Samuel Huntigton The Clash of Civilisations? It's about the proneness to conflict in areas where civlisations/religions meet. It basically says that where the Christian and the Muslim world meet, there will definitely be a conflict. Because of immigration, the Muslim religion is more and more present all over Europe. So there it is likely that there will be a conflict in many European cities because of the religious diversity.
And today at church I saw this humble group of Christians and Arabs (also Muslins thinking of converting) singing together psalms with an Oriental rhythm. Now that's what I call not lamenting but doing something. Not writing books and being famous scientists but thinking globally, acting locally and indeed making a fundamental difference in those people's lives who get involved. I have to admit, I did have goosebums and almost a tear in my eyes. No battle is lost until we accept the defeat!
There might as well repprochement of civilisations instead of a clash!

Party time!

Yesterday was party day. I joined in. Imagine about a 1000 people like herings in a "boite" (how lucky the French call the club boite. Boite means box. Clubs tend to be like boxes filled with people.) So, no one knew no one at the beginning. During the course of the 4 hours I spent there I talked to about 30 people. I do not remember any names. I am sure no one remembers mine either. That's just fair. It felt good to get out of there. Sometimes parties are to ... unnatural. Unreal. All the dresses, the perfumes, the smells...and after a few hours the sweat, the stink - to much pretence to start off with for my taste. But I hope there are few people who feel about the party the way I do. Otherwise the boite will go bankrupt rather soon. I am not mean enough to disclose the name of the club or upload any pictures of last night's party...

My heel!

I go to work to the European Commission first time this morning - actually only to the information meeting - and right in front of the building, the heel of my shoe decided to go its own way...it just simply came off. So I picked it up, went to the reception and kindly asked if they have glue, I cannot be late for my first day's meeting! They told me go to to the closest shoe repair. Since that was not a viable solution, I was already running late, I just asked for the scotch tape. And I fixed my shoe for about half an hour when the heel came off again. I have to express my gratitude towards my colleagues for pretending that they have not noticed my white scotch tape at the bottom of my trousers all day! Anyway, I survived and repeated several times the scotch taping manoeuver today. The morals: Scotch tape doesn't fix shoes. Shoe repair people do! :-)

The most important job in the world!

What do you think is the most important job in the world? I think many of them are crucial for our survival, but there is one that most people feel not too excited to do, yet without someone doing it, all the consumers societies would be flooded with dirt and waste....YES, it's the garbage men (in other words the refuse collectors) that I would like to thank here.
Without them...most of us don't want to think what would be the state of our beloved cities!
We should thank them every time we meet them. We should invite them for a beer (or mint tea) after work! When we are staggering home drunk at 5pm., they are there be rain or snow, making sure that once we get up with our hangover, we'll walk on a clean street to get some English breakfast ingredients!
THANK YOU ALL FOR THE GREAT WORK YOU ARE DOING FOR YOUR FELLOW CITIZENS (and not only citizens)!

Just so...

Do you use public transporation or ride your bike? Does it make a differnece if you do? I guess so. Even thouth the US is one of the countries with the highest energy efficiencies, it has the highest CO2 emissions per person. So what canbe the reason? Power plants and....transportation. Europe is not much better either. Let's do something for the nighingales, the swallows, the storks andthe rest of the bunch...i'd miss the birds singing if they weren't around any more!

This is my lesson of the day!

Evil Jerry?

Do you like Tom and Jerry? They are my all-time favourites! But I just started thinking yesterday, who's the evil one? I always thought Tom was much worse than Jerry, but then I realized that this must be because I am the little sister in our happy little family. I think one of my brothers said that Jerry is the nastier one...I wonder why he said so...

So, what do you think?

Brussels

is the capital of Europe. What city do you consider to be the capital of Europe? Which one is your personal favourite? Mine is Amsterdam. I am short. And since Amsterdam is a relatively small city, I feel it's kind of "human sized" even though most Dutch people are ....way taller than me. Any place is great if you are surrounded by people who like you and vice versa! I guess that poses a challenge sometimes :-)
G'night to everyone!

Feeding the Lama

Never knew Lamas lived in the Netherlands. Apparently they do. Behind a fence, in Oud Diemen! And they love being fed :-)

A link and more

so, the link is globalreporting.blogspot.com :-)
Hope that things out there are fine! You know, it indeed is all about perceptions! Life is. We perceive it. And from the combination of the two, we enjoy life or we suffer from it. Since it is all in our head and we can make all the difference, as long as you are not a masochist, you could as well enjoy it!
I read this cool quote the other day: Worrying is the interest payed to a debt that may never come due.
Good one, don't you think :-)

Climate change

...is scary!
It's the end of June and I am still cold and it's raining all the time in Amsterdam! Yet, even this horrid weather cannot destroy the beauty of this city. It feels good to be here!

Lisbon Oceanario Mascot

Hi, how are you guys doing? I am having a bit confusing time in terms of understanding what is good and what is bad and what are our basic rights and our greediness. I´ll let you know the results of my reflection. Anyway, I´m happy spring is here and I would be even happier, if you, my dear reader, would be happy too!
Lots of hugs and kisses!
Don´t control it, live it!

Last day of February

Every day there is something important that happens. People die, babies are born, scientists discover something, some people are starving others suffer from floods. Yet, most of us, we are having our routine day, going to school, work, cook, take a shower, eat, drink, a day just like any other. Until one day something happens and the good old routine disappears. Sometimes life gets easier, sometimes harder. Anyway, life should never be boring. There is always something to do, to learn, regardless of our budget. So, let´s make most of it, life doesn´t last forever! CARPE DIEM

Ups and downs

Don´t we all have our ups and downs? It´s a matter of perspective .... maybe we cannot make opportunities from all threats in our lives, but it´s important to keep our good faith. It´s funny, sometimes its a matter of formulation, a matter of a smile or simply the waether that influences our perception of our own reality. He goes a puzzle: How do you think the crow in the picture feels? What is his perspective of the person behing the camera? And what is is perspective of 'the artist'? By the way, the picture has been taken from a submarine.

No brand

Aren´t you sick of brands sometimes? And what´s worse, once you take off the stickers, you can still recognize the bottles...tubes...t-shirts, pants and everything. Sad. But I also like brands, that´s the most annoying part of it. They got us all. Only the Marxists escaped :-)))

With love from Amsterdam

It was the SKUNK it wasn´t me ... do you need more explanation? By the way, do you know that the symbol of Amsterdam is XXX? I am not sure if they got it from the porn material or the other way round ... anyway, it doesn´t matter to me, it´s a cool city anyway ... if not the coolest :-))

Algarve figues

I hope you all like figues! They are aphrodisiacs ... or have you already noticed :-) ? And that´s me in the background. So, I am thinking of relevant current issues to share with the Dear Readers ... but I seem to have run out of ideas! Who thinks doing research on the social inclusion/exclusion of immigrants in the light of welfare state regimes is cool? I do ... But noone seems to want to finance my research. So I´ll just work as a translator or something. But if you, Dear Reader have no idea what to do with your money, maybe you could finance my PhD ... we could share it ... you can have the Ph, I´ll stay with the D, deal?

I´m back :-)

Hi everyone!
I forgot to make a NY´s resolution and thus I do not have to update my blog every week:-) I have a friend (or at least I used to have a few years ago) who used to say that he feels "at home" on his blog. Well, I really like the idea and I also feel at home when updating my blog, but fortunately it´s not the only place....where I feel cozy and happy. Lately my home has become Lisbon. It´s an amazing city, extremely diverse! Yet, I miss some kind of organisation and thus I decided to find my way back to the Benelux countries. Let´s see if it works out!
I hope you all are doing well, getting worried about global warming, recycling your trash and not running the tap while you wash your theeth! By the way, Al Gore is today at Forum Lisboa, but I already saw his movie (The Inconvenient Truth) so I´ll skip the live meeting with him. I am politically un-involved :-) (that is probably not the correct word..)
Anyway, it´s nice to be back!

Prague - the mother of all cities

I guess most people are not as passionate about Prague as I am...but I just can't help it! So here goes a picture from last weekend's visit to this magic place! The weather was sunny, my camera is to be blamed for the colours of the photo...but still, isn't it breathtaking? 

Girl with a Pearl Earring

Is this picture familiar? Maybe the motion picture? I case anyone is interested in the original, go to The Hague and you shall see it at the Mauritshuis! If you have a Museumkaart, you'll see it for free! Enjoy the art! 

Dutch chess

This is how the Dutch play chess before Christmas. Don't you envy their attitude to life? I do... 

Dear Everyone,
I have the feeling that noone is reading my blog...But it's ok, I only update it once every three months :-) So, I hope Dear Reader that you have a great day and enjoy life fully without hurting others or yourself! Ciao, when I'll have some nice pics, I'll share them with you!

Some of the masterpieces of modern architecture in Borneo Docks in Amsterdam, just East from the Central Station.
A thrilling chill out place - as Tiago would put it! Ta fixe
By the way, dear Blog readers, I'm looking forward to your feedbacks ad hope that if you'll ever come to the Netherlands, you'll find it just as inspiring as I do! See you around... 

Marken Lighthouse

A pic from our trip to Marken, a picturesque isend just North of Amsterdam. Check it out if you are around :-) 

Sorry!

I apologize for the extremely long silence, I guess noone is reading my bolg any more, anyway...Well, I had to reinstall my software so now I'll have to look for Picasa and Hello to post some pictures. Patience, companeros, patience!

Amsterdam

Dearest reader!
I apologize for the long silence! Finally I am in Amsterdam, in the Sin City as some call it - the best place I have ever been to and where I encourage everyone to come! How is it? I can't tell you, you have to find out for yourself, but you won't regret it - regardless of your age, gender, religion - if you are open and don't mind being challenged, this is the place to be!

My brother's famous pic of the space shuttle Discovery (being launched).

I'm done!

Dear Anyone who happens to read this! I am finally done with schoool in Prague. It's a great city (check out www.prague.tv), but enough is enough. The castle, Charles Bridge,dark Kozel beer, cozy little pubs...all this is fun, but at some point it's kind of time to move on.
It's actually really hard to adapt to the environment where you live. Being satisfied with what one has is a gift! Unfortunately, I don't seem to have this gift, yet! Anyone who finds its recipe, please let me know!
until then...

Referendum

I'm getting closer to graduating but I also feel an emptyness...of majoring in European Integration and the French rejecting the Constitutional treaty. It's like you study accounting and one morning you wake up and accounting has been cancelled thoughout the world...it feels like they took something from you, no? I am very angry with those French citizens who voted no. And I am mainly angry with those horrible polititians, who represented the No campaign. A Dutch No cannot be the same as a French no.
I would like to express my joy over the animal testing ban for cosmetics from 2007 in the EU. We are doing it to ourselves...do we really want to be competitive or we want to care about each other and the environment?
The EU priorities are not all that clear to me.
Viva the USA.
I think we should stop and think, dear Europe!