Found this - brilliant! An Old Zen Joke: "Don't just do something! Sit there!"
Another birthday. This is the sort of thins one remembers. Craig treated me to two dinners last weekend. And a breakfast, as he pointed out last night when I summarized my birthday. Indeed! Found a fantastic pancake place in Jordaan.
Martin sent me an article in which I am featured! I will here post the parts which feature me - the article is really very long and is about long- and short term memory.
Years back, I spent about 3 hours entrenched in ferocious battle with then girlfriend about something I can no longer recall. After we had stormed the exact same emotional beachfront for the nth time, I demanded a cease-fire, declaring, “Babe, I am tired, and I have work tomorrow. I am going to sleep. We can continue hating each other in the morning.”
Her gorgeous frost-blue Scandinavian eyes narrowed into cracks on a glacial field.
“You do that. Go to sleep. And I’ll cut your balls off.”
Slept in the RAV 4 that night. With the doors locked. And the garage entrance bolted. And a male chastity belt equipped (basically, hands-over-testicles). Terrible nightmares of Laurena Bobbit winning the Nobel Peace Prize and Thai women feeding penises to poultry. But at least I still sing the National Anthem as a baritone.
Relationship endured over 18 tumultuous months and 3 bruising continents. Ended somewhere in southern Sweden when she punched me in the face, kicked me down a flight of stairs, and ejected my suitcase, clothes and person into 8 inches of snow at 2 in the morning, after I had inquired (quite naively I now admit) just how many guys had she been with before me anyway.
She wrote me an email recently, after about 4 years of non-communication, claiming she had nothing but fond recollections about us. No mention of the “I’ll cut your balls off”, or the “Go to hell”s, or the “I’ll see you in hell”s, or even the “If I see you in hell, I’ll cut your balls off”. Funny how time distills all things.
... (extremely long passage about other things)
The mind is an amazing place, and if our memories tend to be selective, it does not make it a less perfect space, just a more human playground. I hope to bump into all my friends in this area and share a collective emotional resonance. And if my ex-girlfriend is there, too, I’d like to give her a hug. But just in case, my RAV 4 is going to be parked pretty near as well.
Copyright? Martin Valdes.
Brought back a lot of memories of good times! Or so it seems now. It really does. For the record, I didn't kick him down any stairs, I think I kicked him first and then he ran down the stairs and out the door.
Thursday, 26 February 2009
Thursday, 29 January 2009
Amsterdam Working Life
Moving into our own place this weekend! Very happy, though can imagine Mark and Gladys are EVEN happier... I guess when most people invite friends to crash at their house whilst they sort themselves out, they are not exactly talking about a period of 2 months? Oh well. The new place is a temporary lease also, we will be staying on the Amstel river right near the Amstel Hotel for 2 months.
In another development, I am now working for EF, Swedish company and the role (at least in theory) relates very well to what I have done in life and career. See great potential, even though at the moment it's a bit on the boring side. Not too bad after hysterical London-Life experience however.
Feel almost like have got my life back and things are more together and clear than ever - even though looking at it from the outside it would seem as tough everything was more up-in-the-air and opposite of stable than ever. Funny how that works.
Have started Bikram Yoga with Craig.
In another development, I am now working for EF, Swedish company and the role (at least in theory) relates very well to what I have done in life and career. See great potential, even though at the moment it's a bit on the boring side. Not too bad after hysterical London-Life experience however.
Feel almost like have got my life back and things are more together and clear than ever - even though looking at it from the outside it would seem as tough everything was more up-in-the-air and opposite of stable than ever. Funny how that works.
Have started Bikram Yoga with Craig.
Wednesday, 7 January 2009
Amsterdam Life 2009
I managed to add some photos, success!
I am in Amsterdam. Living in Mark’s and Gladys’ house (and Bodils’) without paying rent; as am in the unfortunate situation of being unemployed and homeless! This is nowhere near as bad as it sounds, in fact, I am quite enjoying it. M&G are in Mexico and Craig is in Austria – But ANNA is in the DAM.
Basically got some bad advice from an immigration agent, bla bla bla – moved to Amsterdam.
Craig already hunted down a job, sorted a flat (for Feb-Mar) and got us bikes. Myself, I opted to laze around Sweden for a few weeks – visited grandparents and father, all is the same there. Mother on the other hand is making great technological progress, and has recently purchased her own laptop, installed skype AND got a webcam. Now I just need to figure out my webcam and then we can sit and look at each other all evenings long.
Started the job-application process again. Forgot what a hassle it is. Met with a few agencies (and no, I don’t want to consider agency recruitment but thanks for asking) and had one interview so far. Today. Took 4 hours. Afterwards felt exhausted almost as if had been at work. Looking at a few temp options too. Imagine, though, when one is working one would give anything to NOT be working. Then one is not working, and doing nothing all day apart from looking for jobs… It’s a twisted world.
Amsterdam is beautiful. When the sun shines it’s too pretty, totally different feel from London.
Also focusing more on self, in a spiritual way. Doing some very interesting reading, and not just the spiritual stuff – but about the world in general. There is so much to know. Must be a little careful with this spiritualism, it’s not for everyone. In “The Power of Now” it says that whenever someone says “Sorry to have kept you waiting” you should simply reply “I was not waiting. I was enjoying myself – in joy in myself.” Naturally this was the conclusion of a whole chapter about not spending your life waiting to live your life – but taken out of context like that it won’t always work… If someone didn’t suspect you were bonkers before, they will after you said that to them. Still, my mood should not depend on what others think, so it didn’t matter.
I am in Amsterdam. Living in Mark’s and Gladys’ house (and Bodils’) without paying rent; as am in the unfortunate situation of being unemployed and homeless! This is nowhere near as bad as it sounds, in fact, I am quite enjoying it. M&G are in Mexico and Craig is in Austria – But ANNA is in the DAM.
Basically got some bad advice from an immigration agent, bla bla bla – moved to Amsterdam.
Craig already hunted down a job, sorted a flat (for Feb-Mar) and got us bikes. Myself, I opted to laze around Sweden for a few weeks – visited grandparents and father, all is the same there. Mother on the other hand is making great technological progress, and has recently purchased her own laptop, installed skype AND got a webcam. Now I just need to figure out my webcam and then we can sit and look at each other all evenings long.
Started the job-application process again. Forgot what a hassle it is. Met with a few agencies (and no, I don’t want to consider agency recruitment but thanks for asking) and had one interview so far. Today. Took 4 hours. Afterwards felt exhausted almost as if had been at work. Looking at a few temp options too. Imagine, though, when one is working one would give anything to NOT be working. Then one is not working, and doing nothing all day apart from looking for jobs… It’s a twisted world.
Amsterdam is beautiful. When the sun shines it’s too pretty, totally different feel from London.
Also focusing more on self, in a spiritual way. Doing some very interesting reading, and not just the spiritual stuff – but about the world in general. There is so much to know. Must be a little careful with this spiritualism, it’s not for everyone. In “The Power of Now” it says that whenever someone says “Sorry to have kept you waiting” you should simply reply “I was not waiting. I was enjoying myself – in joy in myself.” Naturally this was the conclusion of a whole chapter about not spending your life waiting to live your life – but taken out of context like that it won’t always work… If someone didn’t suspect you were bonkers before, they will after you said that to them. Still, my mood should not depend on what others think, so it didn’t matter.
Champagne Engagement Party!
Consuming engagement gift! The label says (something like) "Craig and Anna, Congratulations on your engagement, Best Wishes from Brendan and Bianca" Unfortunately we did not get a chance to consume it with them, so here we are drinking it with cousin Malcolm!
Thursday, 16 October 2008
After summer!
Almost thought my blogging days were over. Things were looking up over summer, days got longer - weather was good! But now we are in October and I would just like to say a few words about that before proceeding to detail summer just gone.
Once again we have cold and darkness. Have had the worst few weeks imaginable at work, in fact - sitting here with computer right now missing out on night out with friends as one should refrain from acting crazy in front of ones friends when one can avoid it. And I am slowly but surely going crazy. Therefore, I now feel it would be beneficial to post daily (or possibly weekly) rants to this regard.
After deciding to stay in, discovered that cannot even watch DVDs in the living room as some insanely uninteresting football game is on, and I am living in someone else's home. Beans on toast for dinner - and life seems to have plummeted to previously unexplored lows.
So then - summer.
BRILLIANT time spent at festivals, namely Rock am Ring in Germany and Glastonbury in... well, Glastonbury. The big moment was when Craig got down on his knees and proposed marriage (rehearsed Swedish speech) during Leonard Cohen's set at the Pyramid stage. My friends and I were totally taken by surprise but all was very dignified and graceful and I said YES! And the ring fit. Very impressed by this to this day, and absolutely believe that is a sign that it's meant to be.
I had been drinking cider all day, but I have been told after what was said. I clearly remember the moment itself. It happened right before my friend Alex fell head first down a slope which wasn't a slope and crashed right into a bunch of people - after which Craig and I took off walking round the whole festival area telling everyone we just got engaged. Good times.
BRILLIANT time in Serbia for the EXIT festival, where we celebrated Craig's 30th. He is quite old.
Also spent one week in Sweden which was great.
Would love to post some photos but seems Craig has hidden them in some extension of laptop called portable hard drive or memory or some such - will work out how to post some later on.
Craig does not like laptop very much.
Once again we have cold and darkness. Have had the worst few weeks imaginable at work, in fact - sitting here with computer right now missing out on night out with friends as one should refrain from acting crazy in front of ones friends when one can avoid it. And I am slowly but surely going crazy. Therefore, I now feel it would be beneficial to post daily (or possibly weekly) rants to this regard.
After deciding to stay in, discovered that cannot even watch DVDs in the living room as some insanely uninteresting football game is on, and I am living in someone else's home. Beans on toast for dinner - and life seems to have plummeted to previously unexplored lows.
So then - summer.
BRILLIANT time spent at festivals, namely Rock am Ring in Germany and Glastonbury in... well, Glastonbury. The big moment was when Craig got down on his knees and proposed marriage (rehearsed Swedish speech) during Leonard Cohen's set at the Pyramid stage. My friends and I were totally taken by surprise but all was very dignified and graceful and I said YES! And the ring fit. Very impressed by this to this day, and absolutely believe that is a sign that it's meant to be.
I had been drinking cider all day, but I have been told after what was said. I clearly remember the moment itself. It happened right before my friend Alex fell head first down a slope which wasn't a slope and crashed right into a bunch of people - after which Craig and I took off walking round the whole festival area telling everyone we just got engaged. Good times.
BRILLIANT time in Serbia for the EXIT festival, where we celebrated Craig's 30th. He is quite old.
Also spent one week in Sweden which was great.
Would love to post some photos but seems Craig has hidden them in some extension of laptop called portable hard drive or memory or some such - will work out how to post some later on.
Craig does not like laptop very much.
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