Danser encore in 2021 ***Looking back 2021 wasn't bad.*** *Why not? I mainly forgot what happened back then, from the beginning of the 'old' year till the end. My memory is short it prefers to forget what is bad, why it went wrong, the role I played.* **January**'s 2021 lockdown, the cold no longer hurt me today. I survived, lived my life and did it my way. **February**'s pain and struggles are past. Not one single member of my family, friend, acquaintance, neighbour or…
New Year's Eve food New Year's Eve? We call it"Old Year's Evening" since it's the last evening of the year. Does it come with good memories? I would love to say yes but my mother made it hard for anyone to be happy no matter how hard we tried. New Year's Eve was usually celebrated at my grandparent's house. My grandmother baked the treats: oliebollen and apple beignets. Bowls, buckets and basins filled with them. As we arrived I always ran into grandpa's office to have a…
Good cop, bad cop This expression I heard for the first time in a film. It doesn't mean the police in the Netherlands doesn't use this trick to frame people although, they always promote themselves as the good guy. 'That cap fits everyone' is one of the slogans they once hoped to attract more people with. Most people know 'the police isn't your best friend' (another slogan) which makes joining those uniforms tough especially if you don't agree with what presently is going…
I don't need to eat! Before I fell asleep I told myself: *I don't need to eat!* I repeat and repeat this sentence to change my mindset. *I don't need to eat. I don't need to eat.* I watched a programme about 'living with Praha". The lady tells how her travel into this lifestyle started. It took her ten years. A lifestyle she tried out and developed into a Western version. "I live here not in India so the Indian style doesn't make sense to me." As years passed by she and her…
The crowd Unexpected a big crowd showed up in Amsterdam. The demonstration was cancelled by the mayor because the police/ME would strike. Without police/ME no one can keep all those people safe. What the mayor didn't know is she cannot forbid demonstrations. Two people decided to have coffee and the rest -ten thousand people or more- decided to have a coffee too. https://youtu.be/dtZt-fT1peo The police were present and told everyone to go into a certain street. They did, the…
What if there's no electricity? The luxury of electricity is normal to many of us. If it all works fine it's hard to imagine what life looks like without once used to devices with a plug. The fridge, washing machine, smartphone, computer, television set, radio, oven and so much more can no longer function without a socket. Today I miss the good old batteries. It feels as if there's aways something to charge. Being not able to to cook, making a necessary phone call or heating…
Dirt on face What do you do if your face is dirty? Not everyone is in the position to put his head underneath a faucet, take a shower or use a washcloth, water and soap or whatever is needed to wipe the dirt away. Dirt comes from mud, food (we do not all eat neatly), tobacco, snot, makeup, aftershaves, perfumes, creams and whatever is in the air or at our hands -or someone else's- if we touch our face. *"How to Get Rid of Built-Up Dirt On Skin?* *The buildup of make-up,…
Living in a bubble *"Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow."* Good for a song but not something I would ask for. It started snowing yesterday. Small flakes, big flakes. I watched them falling through the window and had a walk outside twice. If it snows it's not so cold and the dirty world looks like a better place. Not that it is and it won't take for long but for a moment it is. It's an illusion ugliness, dirt, mud and even garbage no longer exist. Snow covers the bad up…
If you want it, you can do it Why is it you fear? How come you do not give yourself some credit? Don't you trust yourself? Why not do what needs to be done, give it a try? No one is born successful. Practice makes the master. Practice, creativity and the will to do it. A Dutch saying I rarely hear these days: Wil niet en kan niet liggen naast elkaar op het kerkhof begraven. Will not and can not have been buried next to each other in the cemetery which means: the only two…
Tea time Tea time, the time meant to drink tea. To some served with sandwiches, cupcakes and other treats. If you drink tea the entire day is that called tea time too? At 3:30 pm after school, it used to be tea time. Time to gather around the kitchen table for a cup of tea and a cookie. A cookie also called tea biscuit. We didn't drink much back then. One cup of tea during breakfast, one cup at 3:30 pm and perhaps a cup with the evening meal which was bread. Drinking during…
Why? *Forgotten, dead and buried.* **Out of bed at 6 am** and cleaning my room. Why do I have to push the bed in the middle of the room and lift all small furniture on it every day so it's easier for her vacuuming? Just like me, the vacuum cleaners in our house never has a day off. It's 6 o'clock and I'm already super tired. I didn't sleep much and don't think it will get any better. My mother kept screaming and I tried not to hear her. It's hard. The walls are not keeping…
What a small world *"We have to forget what we are taught."* It made me think as I heard this and I agree. Just like many people I'm raised by the government, raised by a society that stood for something. A government that was paid to fulfil a certain task. That task is not about protecting the people, those people who pay them but keeping them under their thumb. Who still believes money doesn't make happy is a fool. All you need is money not love to succeed. **Many songs…
The lost country *"It's not my country anymore."* I understand if my child tells me the country it once thought was home, open, friendly, a democracy turns out not to be. What more can I as a parent say to that as *"I understand"* and *"you know what? I thought the same yesterday as I looked out of the window..."* I never thought this child of mine would see the always so idealized country with different eyes but it happened and I'm not the kind of mum who'll say: My dear…
Comics The first comic magazine I found at my grandparent's house was 'Sjors'. I mainly liked the stories about '**Sjors en Sjimmie**' a white and black boy. They lived with the Colonel and it felt to me both were accepted the way they are. The comic books about Sjors and Sjimmie were published years later. In 1969 it was Jan Kruis who changed the 'stereotypical' look of the boys. Today they look totally different. Sjors and Sjimmie are an original comic of Frans Piët. The…
Would you've turned around? Once you step into a jab centre you made up your mind. You will take that jab for a reason. Your motive. You might want to go out, visit a pub or restaurant, want to travel or go to a festival. You do not take that injection because you deeply care about all those unknown elderly people or the vulnerable. If you take that jab you do it for yourself. That shot gives you hope. The hope to go to the cinema, the hope to enter a shop or in some cases…
3G, 2G, 5G 2G and 3G preceded 4G and now 5G is emerging. 5G is not the same as the 3G that some countries use to distinguish the people for the past two years. In this case, 3G stands for three words starting with the letter 'G'. These 3Gs refer to the three ways of proving that you are not a danger to your society. Without a 'G' you don't get in or can travel. With us, 'G' stands for geprikt (injected, vaccinated is an incorrect term), getest (tested with a test that even…
If discouragement catches you Not in the mood to talk or write... "Eventually, discouragement catches all of us," someone dear to me wrote. It's true eventually it does especially to those who have a good reason to feel the way they do at this very moment. Discouraged... How to encourage someone who doesn't live next door? A person who needs to hear you are willing to listen and if you can give that helping hand? You can write back but if the message doesn't arrive or isn't…
A Google free life **My very old phone gave up on me** today at least it looks like it. It starts up with a rattling sound and next it shuts down. Later I'll ask my child for the tiny screwdriver to open (operate) it. What is broken can only be fixed. It's worth the try. In the meanwhile, I looked for another phone. It can be a simple one just to make calls (a battery that lasts a week is rare these days and I'm getting tired of buying adapters and cables. The cables don't…
All you need to be is a swine *I wrote a poetical tale a while ago about* *the three pigs.* *No one will read it today since it's too much scrolling to find it back, you readers are too busy with staying alive or fearing what might happen one day or perhaps just too lazy to scroll (so and I). No offense but I'm sorry I cannot take part in all that keeps others busy. I just don't want the stress, all that fuss and write on. Write about whatever triggers my mind. No matter who…
What's in a name? **Nothing? Everything?** It depends on who you speak, what you believe but one thing's for sure names do not all sound the same. Not to the ears of humans and not to the ears of animals. It's the same for foreign languages. If we are not used to the accent what sounds romantic or sweet to some can be harsh to others. Personal ideas, feelings based on life experiences or (dis)likes influence how we feel or think about a name too. *If you have time* *listen…
Chaos *Promptless I am. I don't know what to write about yet but that's what a freewrite is about. I'll figure it out while I'm writing.* My day is a bit hectic and time goes faster than expected. I didn't come to do what I intended to do but at least I have warm feet. I turned my chair and keep them off the floor in front of the (propan) gas heater. I still have one cold hand though. Usually, I start the day by reading the news. Not all the news but certain news. Not…
CBDC the Central Bank Digital Currency ***In March 2019****, the UK Institute and Faculty of Actuaries published a comprehensive report on CBDCs. It lists the countries that are either researching this or are abandoning it for the time being. I did not come across the Netherlands so quickly but this country will definitely switch to the new digital currency for everyone because it is involved in the great reset of which CO2 emission and the co-vi-d hoax are part as well.…
Carbon footprint "*We made a mess out of it, the world and that's why we have to do something to make it up, to make it possible to have nature, fresh air and a great world to live in left for our children."* When exactly did the idea we spoiled the world and with that, the future of our children start? Who tries to make us believe 'we' did it? As I was a child no one cared about me, the environment, nature, CO2 or the future of the next generation. A future you built…
Another dimension Waking up never been easy I wonder where I am Even before I open my eyes I marvel about time and day The timepiece of the matron - what was her name again - Ticks on and on and on Location next to my bed It sounds louder and louder till it suddenly stops Where am I? Do I need to go or be somewhere Is there a reason to leave my bed Hastily at this very moment Instead of living in oblivion? Too many beatings on the head Capillaries, nerves, threats The…
How to get rid of Deedee? *Deedee glanced around the table. "Why is everyone trying to get rid of me?"* *"*What do you think?" Her brother's voice sounded the same as that of her late father. A man who never wanted a daughter and did everything to convince her that she was despised. Unwanted and alive only by his grace. For his 'goodness' she should have shown her gratitude in every conceivable way. Again and again and again. Every minute of the day she fought to forget him.…
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