Moving

The old office was getting a bit too small, so it was time to move. After a careful search and having seen multiple objects in Amsterdam, we found a new location.



Yesterday the moment had arrived to move all our stuff.

Almost everything is gone, only the cabinet and tables remain...

[ and the fridge, flip-over, waste bin, a plant, some boxes, posters, ... ]



With two trips with the moving van and tearing down a small wall our new office address is:

Lauriergracht 17
1016 RE
Amsterdam

There are still a couple of things that need to be done, but over a week or two I expect to be able to done some work with a view on the canals.

[ for now I will work at home with a less watery view... ]

Mouse what..? (2)

I have the perfect use for my liquid mouse mat. It's the perfect surface for my desk stones!

It has a soothing effect, just by looking at it...

[ all we need now is some sand, a palm tree and a tropical cocktail... ]

Mouse what..?

To promote a product I'm currently working on, a large number of mouse mats have been given away. The mouse mats are made of some transparent plastic and are filled with a blue liquid. If you move your mouse over the surface, the blue liquid moves too...

The properties of the liquid used create all kinds of nice effects with dark and lighter blue colours.

[ and a couple of floating airpockets... ]



I placed one of these mouse mats on its side, hoping that gravity would create a very interesting distribution of colours. Instead, the following happend:

I see a tormented face, what do you see..?!

unfortunately is this face somewhat less spectaculair than the (in)famous Jesus on a piece of toast...

[ so I won't put it up for auction on eBay... ]

Dancing floor garden

My downstairs neighbours have been hard at work the last couple of weekends, but they finally inished their garden now.

[ only there's little left that can be called a garden... ]



With the exception of the two trees that were already there, they have covered the whole garden with a wooden floor.

The garden dance floor of my downstairs neighbours...

I have no idea what they are planning to do in the garden, but I have the suspicion they're not too fond of gardening...

You have been warned!

I came across this really bizarre warning when leaving the airport of Gatwick (London):

CAUTION
Beware of passenger buggies

You can never be too careful...

Since I read that sign, I anxiously kept my eye on all buggies. Especially empty ones were a source of concern for me.

[ I got all kinds of strange Monty-Python-like images in my head... ]

Burning question

When was the last time you drunk from a high pressure fire hose..?



I have started wondering this since today. Someone has put a sticker on all fire hoses in the building: "No drinking water".

You're now officially warned not to drink from these anymore...

[ luckily we're still allowed to drink from the dry powder fire extinguishers... ]

Windows tv

I was very surprised when I watched a local TV station here in Amsterdam: A1, Salto. Instead of the regular dull 'Salto Text TV' which is normally shown at this time, there was a big 'This program is not responding' message displayed on the screen.

Windows on your TV...

I hope someone quickly restarts the computer of this television station.

[ so we can continue to watch that 'Text TV' program... ]

Lego shop

Why don't we have one of these in the Netherlands..?!



In Brighton I visited an official Lego store. In a place like that, big man are transformed into small boys...

[ with enough pocket money to buy stuff... ]

A Lego Star Wars Death star, wow...

I could constrain myself buying any Lego, but I did buy this T-shirt.

[ I was able to squeeze into the largest kiddy sized shirt... ]

Ikkyu, hurray!

The exam was a little more exhilarating than I had expected, but I managed to get my Ikkyu degree tuesday in Brighton for iaido.

My official Britsch Kendo Association certificate...

I will not bore you with all the details am sure to tell all the details as soon as I get the chance, but I am very pleased with passing and receiving my degree.

[ Sven, Rogier and Lida also passed: 2x Ikkyu, 1x Shodan... ]



On wednesday night we are having a special kendo-kata course and thursday and friday there will be more iaido teached by Morita, Oshita en Hosogawa sensei.

Pick-up point

I bike past this sign almost daily again and I finally decided on its meaning.

Under this sign the text "Q-port Tui" is written...

The sign indicates an alien pick-up point. When the time is ripe, a big spaceship will come to that location and will take everybody that is waiting there.



Years ago some people believed that Halley's comet was a big spaceship that was coming to give them a ride. Maybe they were right, but I'm convinced they were waiting in the wrong place...

[ I know where I will be waiting on July 28th 2061... ]

Phone names

Sometimes someone says uses a new name for something which sort of sticks. Before you know it, you start using that word...



For my work I regularly have to be in telephone meetings with colleagues in Dayton Ohio (America). For these meetings we use a special conference telephone. We used to call this phone 'the spiderphone'.

[ which makes sense; the phone has three legs, just like a spider... ]

The phone formaly know as the spiderphone...

We we were getting ready to start a meeting the other day, the connection was made with Dayton, but the meeting hadn't started yet. In the background you could hear people talking, drinking coffee and entering the room.

My colleague (who had never used the spiderphone before and was not attending the meeting) was wondering where all the bustle came from. When I pointed to the conference telephone she said:

"Oh, it sounds just like a babyphone..."

So that's why I now call that telephone 'the babyphone'.

[ just too bad that its dull and black, there are so many nicer models... ]

The mad hatter

My parents recently returned from a trans-Siberian traintrip which brought them, among other places, to Mongolia. As a souvenir they brought me something.

A real Mongol hat...

I fit the hat perfectly and it feels pretty warm...

[ now all I have to do is wait until it gets really cold here... ]

Being outdoors

Today I spend almost the entire day outside. The weather was nice, so I had a great time together with a bunch of knights, witches, trolls and mages who happend to spend the day outside as well.



[ and where I was, there even was a small little tiny castle... ]

A piece of castle and a clear blue sky...

If you are wondering in what kind of fantasy realm I have spend my day, please click here.

[ I just have been to my first ever fantasy festival... ]

Ouch...

I have no idea how this happend, but I have a very sore left big toe.

Blue toe = painful toe...

There is some kind of blue swelling under my toenail, which doesn't make you very happy as toe owner.

[ hopefully my toe will return to its original color soon... ]

Dog sign

I thought this sign was very charming: No dogs allowed

No dogs allowed in this part of town...

The charm was not derived from the fact that I do not want to see any dogs in the centre of the town of Soest. No, it is the fact that this sign was placed exactly at dog-reading-height.

[ I hope dogs spot this sign if their owners fail to do so... ]