Keep your eye upon the donut

Texture

2012-01-15T18:29:00.000+01:00

Inspired by Andrea Scher I've been trying to see the beauty in ordinary things. I loved this metal plate with the graffiti of the word 'Paz' being eaten through by the rust... it had such an amazing texture, I wanted to photograph it over and over again

You are being watched... - part 2

2012-01-15T17:59:00.002+01:00

You are being watched...

2011-12-01T20:39:00.001+01:00

Copenhagen street art - part 2 Vesterbro

2011-11-27T12:51:00.001+01:00

I left Copenhagen mid-September and I must say I am missing my time there. In a way life was less hectic over there, I knew less people and I spent more time alone discovering the streets and shooting pictures than I have done since I've been back in Amsterdam.

These pictures were take in the area Vesterbro, around the corner from where I was living. It's a very trendy neighbourhood combining low-life junkies and homeless with cool cafes and amazing street art.

Love these huge murals.

Do something

2011-10-04T19:00:00.000+02:00

Is this a message from the Universe?

Spotted whilst cycling down Wibautstraat

Treasures on the walls - Amsterdam

2011-10-03T21:01:00.000+02:00

Found in the Jordaan

I enjoyed my 2 weeks between jobs and made the most of my freedom to walk and cycle around Amsterdam and get back in touch with 'my' city. Found some cool streetart on the way:-)

Anjelierstraat

Paradijsplein - Amsterdam Oost

Shadow

2011-09-29T20:01:00.000+02:00

I went to the parc this afternoon to relax and enjoy the sun, and on my way home I saw this flower and its shadow behind. It's not a perfect picture, but taking my camera everywhere with me is definitely helping to train my eye. Now off to look at some photography tutorials on youtube:-)

Copenhagen street art - part 1

2011-09-27T16:18:00.001+02:00

I don't remember when I started to really like street art, but I think it began when I fell upon the Banksy book in the living room of the flat I was sharing. His art was so funny and witty, it just had me laughing to myself. Or maybe it was the Laser 3.14 messages all around Amsterdam. I'm not certain. But since a few years I really enjoy spotting art on the walls, stencils, graffiti or stickers that are left apparently for the sole purpose of getting us to look at a things differently.

Around Copenhagen I found lots of exciting things and wish I had had more roaming time to discover other things... In Vesterbro just close to my place I found these by Basco5, they are totally cool and so cute, and on his website there's much more... http://www.bascofive.com/main.html

I'll put up some more of my findings soon. It's fun searching the web to find out more about who is behind these beauties:-)

Prags Have

2011-09-11T20:51:00.000+02:00

Last weekend, I spent all of sunday cycling around on my free bike through Copenhagen to the seaside at Amagerstrand. I saw many wonderful things during my tours of the city, but what I like the most is that there is a series of local initiatives which totally correspond to my belief of the way our urban development should be heading.

Prags Have is a beautiful community garden built on an abandoned industrial terrain. It's aim is to bring the local people closer to how food is produced, have a meeting point for local children to learn how to garden. There's also a kitchen where they prepare dishes with products from the garden.

I would LOVE to have a similar garden in my neighbourhood in Amsterdam. I need to find out if there is one, who knows...

Read more here: http://urbanagriculture.dk/?p=572

So long as you do not stop

2011-09-05T19:27:00.002+02:00

I've not been blogging for a long time, just over a year actually. 2 weeks after my last post, my father died. It went much faster than we expected. It was tough, but somehow not as tough as the 9 months before, when he was very sick with cancer. After that, I didn't feel the urge to blog for a while, nothing seemed worth saying really.

Also my life got turned upside down in another way... I agreed to work for 7 months in Copenhagen, but without letting go of my life in Amsterdam. Deciding to do this was tough as it meant chosing my work over my personal life (which is not in line with my values), but (ironically) this allowed me to have the right conditions to be able to buy a flat in Amsterdam, a dream I'd had for about 5 years.

So I started commuting between Amsterdam and Copenhagen, returning most weekends. I was spending about 2 precious evenings a week at airports, that's a lot of time. As well as trying to set up my flat, and spending time with my family in this period of mourning, and trying to keep in touch with my friends near and far etc. All together quite overwhelming.

I didn't take time to blog. But I journalled regularly, most mornings on the train, and often at the aiport, or at home or in cafes. I also started trying to improve my photography skills. And then one day I felt drawn to my blog again, I started having ideas for it and things I wanted to share.

Now I will see where this feeling will take me. Not long ago I saw this wonderful sticker on a mailbox which reminds me:

Wise words - mailbox Copenhagen

Drifting away

2010-08-29T14:46:00.003+02:00

When I saw this picture I immediately loved it. It really portrays the way I feel sometimes: lost, a little absurd, drifting away on a stove, half stranded on a beach...

Grateful

2010-08-18T13:39:00.004+02:00

Sometimes it's important to remember the things we can be grateful for. I've been working on this little booklet of all those precious things in my life... only a couple more pages to go. For the whole booklet click here

Ever wonder what you've been up to?

2010-08-13T16:21:00.004+02:00

This is a collage I put together in about 10mn of some of the tickets, cards, bits and bobs that were lying around on my desk. I always keep all these things and never do anything with them... I might try and do this every so often. It's funny to look back over the last few months and see where I've been and what I've been up to!

A weekend away

2010-07-26T22:13:00.003+02:00

I just spent a short weekend away on Terschelling, the biggest of the Wadden islands in the north of the Netherlands. The island is truly beautiful, with dunes, pines forests and gorgeous long beaches of white sand. We spent our time there enjoying the simple pleasures of life: feet in the sand, jumping photos, a long walk along the shore, much chatting and a lot of laughter, good food. It was so good to smell the ocean air, feel the wind and the sun shining on my skin, to see the beautiful landscapes. A weekend like this is enough to awaken all my senses, make me want to do new things and see new places (even not far from home) and give me energy for the next weeks...

Note to self

2010-07-02T10:40:00.004+02:00

These days I am busy looking for an appartment to buy here in Amsterdam. Of course I have very high expectations, I want a renovated sunny flat in very good state in a nice neighbourhood with equal sized rooms,a balcony, a not too tiny bathroom, not too expensive etc.

I know I will find the perfect place for me and I will probably realise it as soon as I walk in, but in the mean time I am visiting many flats that do not correspond to my dream home and sometimes I feel restless. I want to find the flat and I want to find it now! Or I start to doubt, should I buy this flat even if it does not totally suit me?

In the end I take a deep breath and remember to have faith, the Universe has always brought me wonderful things and to give it time to bring them, I just need to have patience.

The things I dream about

2010-06-28T14:15:00.004+02:00

Recently I read about the Arthouse Co-op, they set up projects which anyone around the world can participate in as a really interesting way of encouraging artists to make art. The art sent in will then be exhibited in a travelling art library.

There are all sorts of projects (from one word defined on a canvas to filling a whole sketchbook) for different budgets (some are free!). I participated in 'The things I dreal about' project, here's my piece:

It was fun to make and interesting to work on a small space. I liked posting it off to its destiny in the project library... I must say I'm very curious to see the other pieces!

The longest days of the year

2010-06-25T11:10:00.006+02:00

Just enjoying the wonderful sunny weather and long days where the sky is light until passed 10pm. Also, treated myself to some new art supplies to experiment with: stencils, acrylic paint, watercolour pencils, new paint brushes... Can't wait to try them out :-)

Thanx for reminding me to be grateful

2010-06-11T11:19:00.004+02:00

I have a thing for websites where the blogger repeats one idea nearly daily, and today i stumbled upon this wonderful blog a collection of thank you notes to the most surprising things in our everyday life written with a lot of humour. I love how even the most mundane or annoying things become a source of gratitude.

Funny I should find this today since the last couple of days I have been working on a little booklet of things (big and small) that I am grateful for (more about that soon...).

I guess being grateful is the best remedy to being down or unsatisfied. It all comes back to the title of this blog, the key is to focus on what beautiful things are there and not what's missing:

As you ramble through life, brother, whatever be your goal,
Keep your eye upon the doughnut, and not upon the hole.

Dream, transform, inspire

2010-06-04T15:19:00.006+02:00

Sometimes it's easy to focus on the wrong things and feel overwhelmed instead of letting them go. To me it seems like letting go means losing control, but in fact I need to realise I never had that 'control' as I can never anticipate how things will go, and all it brings me is a lot of overthinking.

My aim is to learn to really relax and slow down in order to grow space around the things that take a lot of my energy at the moment. I'm hoping to find there is more space and time than the limits my mind perceives, and that letting go allows truly unexpected things to take place.

Picture is a collage and words taken from keri smith's inspiration words picked at random (from her wonderful book 'Living Out Loud')

Falling into the mind's trap

2010-05-28T13:01:00.003+02:00

Despite all my good resolutions my mind went completely crazy last weekend, spinning dark thoughts all over the place without control. Turns out I fell into my mind's trap again (it had been a really long time since I felt so down). Now I've realised it, I can spot it easier and avoid getting caught in negative thoughts and focus on centering myself again... This little doodle dragon was inhabiting my brain, I got him out on paper, hopefully he won't get me again.

Serenity and an open heart

2010-05-21T10:39:00.003+02:00

At the moment I am struggling with letting go and accepting things as they come. I can feel I am tense and trying to keep things going the way I want or the way I believe things should go. It is exhausting and frustrating because in reality there is only so much I can control.

My reaction then is to want to completely give up on what I'm finding difficult, not even to give it a chance in order not to face my fears and potential 'failure'. But actually I'm realising I need to stop my constant thoughts and just accept to go along with what happens and see where it leads me, without tensing up and expecting the blow before I manage to make it fail. Maybe there is no bad surprise, maybe my fears and anticipation have nothing to do with the amazing potential of what could happen.

So I have written a magic message to keep in mind when I need to stop the thoughts in my head:

I decide to welcome whatever happens with serenity and an open heart.

Let's see if it works...

Forest of visions

2010-05-20T13:28:00.003+02:00

This is the collage I made with the flyers I got at the awesome balkan music party. The name 'forest of visions' brings up all sorts of ideas in my mind, like seeing things before they happen and lots of intertwined visions... I love the cat with x-ray vision (funny enough I was to meet a similar cat in the next days... coincidence?!)

Random images

2010-05-04T17:38:00.006+02:00

I've been busy trying to keep up with regular visual journalling. It sometimes feels like a need, spending a 1/2 hour on it really relaxes my mind. I also realise it leads me to having my eyes more open and picking out interesting images in magazines to play around with. This is an old car that was pulled out from a lake somewhere after many many years. A strange subject to start from but is was fun to work with.

However, I find that I am not always as receptive to images. Sometimes I can pick up a magazine with the intent of cutting out some pictures, patterns or words but I find nothing. At other times every snippet of colour is an inspiration.

I also start seeing the potential in other places too: I was handed loads of flyers at a concert last week and they were the basis for a collage. I'll post it once I have a chance to scan it in the next days.

Speaking of inspiration

2010-04-23T11:34:00.003+02:00

I am addicted to blog surfing to discover new things and find inspiration. Here are two blogs that have made me smile and started ideas boiling in my brain...

Michael Nobbs has a made a free eBook with tips and ideas on how to start drawing your life. It is in a more readable format than the printable versions on flickr, and beautifully presented with his own drawings, lots of suggestions to just pick up and draw! (and it goes for anything creative really)

A wonderful series on mini-journaling written by Lisa Sonora Beam with lots of beautiful colourful pictures, ideas of things to do and advice about fighting our fears etc.

Inspire

2010-04-21T19:06:00.003+02:00

While I was making this page in my visual journal, I picked out a random word cut out from my the Living Out Loud book by keri smith. The word was INSPIRE. It got me thinking a little about what it meant...

I tend to mostly think in terms of looking for inspiration, rather than actually inspiring, though I hope I do and will inspire people from time to time, even without knowing it.

Then the thought came to me that inspiration in French means both: inspiration and breathing in! It seemed so appropriate to me who is always trying to remember to breathe properly in order not to be overwhelmed.

Good mail day

2010-04-16T16:33:00.003+02:00

I wish I could receive hand-written mail and coloured envelopes everyday! I love finding a package or an original looking envelope with unusual stamps on the stairs up to my flat (hell, I even like looking at my neighbours' envelopes and thinking about what they may contain and where they are from!).

Whilst surfing the web I just found a wonderful blog celebrating the joys of snail mail. I'm happy to know I am not alone in my passion for mail, in a world where most of my friends prefer to keep in touch via facebook. I totally love the concept of 'good mail day', the day where you find a letter you weren't expecting smiling at you with news from a far away friend, the day when you are running late and on your way out you find an envelope that sends you off on your day with happiness.

The blog has great pictures and ideas of awesome things sent in the mail. It's inspiring, I know what I will do this weekend, there a few friends I haven't written to in a while!

1 year

2010-04-16T10:05:00.003+02:00

Today is the anniversary of starting this blog. Though I don't have a real direction for it, I really enjoy having this online platform to express my thoughts. To think a whole year has passed already and so much is happening in my life... At the same time I feel so much more grounded than I was a year ago, so much more ME in a way.

This simple collage I made shakes up something in me. I love the big open window with a large view and the letters vaguely seen through transparency, like a sign that it is OK to look wide and also show who you are underneath. I'm starting to realise that many unconscious thoughts come to the surface when I do collages, visual journal pages, doodles.

Making sense

2010-04-11T13:14:00.003+02:00

Spring is finally here, the days are longer, flowers are popping up all over the place after the long and cold winter we've had. It's great to see the growth of nature that nothing can stop, and the beauty of each little flower.

This is a period of shakiness on my feet, not knowing where to turn to and feeling a bit lost. But I'm hanging in there, with the hope that it will all make sense soon, or at some stage, like spring after winter...

Playing around

2010-03-26T15:58:00.003+01:00

More fun in the Moleskine... when I start I never know where it will go. Just painting the background is relaxing and it lays a basis for the rest, guides the colour code and chases away the fear of the white page. It's important to remember to play, like children, without the need to know where we are heading or if it will be good, just following the path the pens and paintbrushes take you...

Visual doodle

2010-03-26T15:00:00.003+01:00

I'm loving my new Moleskine and the evenings I spend with it painting, collaging, drawing, doodling, experimenting... As I do this I like to listen to Triple J radio for the Aussie twang, to discover new music and for the pleasure of the absurdity of listening to a morning show at 10pm:-)

I really enjoy surfing on the site of Doodlers Anonymous and looking at all the imaginative things people from all over the world come up with. The site inspired the page above. Doodling is something I do spontaneously when I have a pen and a piece of paper at work or at my desk. But when given the freedom to push it to the extreme it becomes a form of meditation to get out of my brain and into the flow.

This was made with my faithful black bottle pen (recycled from plastic bottles) and gel pens. It's that simple

Flirt to convert

2010-03-05T09:53:00.004+01:00

I have decided to try visual journalling... I bought myself a beautiful Moleskine (my first!) and decided to just do it, without worrying about the result. It's a journal, remember? so no one has to see it! so I got out my paints and my glue and made a first attempt and left it to dry...

I felt like going a bit further, I guess my juices had started running! so I got out another notebook and made the collage above! I was listening to the radio at the same time and they talked of an expression I'd never heard: Flirt to convert. Apparently it's a technique hot Christians use to get people into church! Goes to show you never know what you will learn whilst listening innocently to the radio ;-P

Travel preparations

2010-02-17T21:23:00.005+01:00

I can pretty much split up my trips in 3 different categories: for work, to go visit my family and to travel somewhere new or exciting! I absolutely love the excitement of preparing for a trip to an unknown destination, there's a wonderful feel of adventure. I know it is not necessary to go far away to break routine, but right now I am savouring the anticipation of going away tomorrow...

I am going for a four day city trip to Warsaw with some girl friends that I adore and I am so happy first about having a well-deserved break from work, going to a totally new country, discovering the food, the streets, the funny sounding words, and doing all that with people I am very close to and who are really fun. I love the buzz of packing, trying not to forget anything important, thinking about what clothes to take so I'll be warm enough...

These last weeks and months have been quite trying and I am glad for a few days 'off' to do things for myself and I know it will bring me the energy I need for the coming period.

Unforeseen chances

2010-02-10T22:32:00.005+01:00

I am having trouble posting regularly on this blog. Really lately time has just been flying past me, and this despite the fact that I am consciously trying to make more time for myself.

The last months have been very difficult and wonderful at the same time. For once I have something 'real' to worry about, and yet I feel ok. Cancer has entered my life, well not mine directly but my father's. He is lucky to be able to take a very strong medicine treatment from home but it is still not easy. I feel very strongly for him as he is really FIGHTING a battle against the disease to stay with us, his family. I feel for my mother who is daily more and more impressive in her way of dealing with things, staying positive, supporting my father and my family and keeping on working her job.

It is a curse, really. But it is also a blessing. A chance for me to see how much my parents love each other even after nearly 30 years. It is a chance for me to be able to get to spend more time with them and go home more often than I have in the last 10 years. It is a chance to see that my sibblings are wonderful and loving (not that I ever doubted it). It is a chance to put things into perspective in my own life and enjoy the moment, whilst finding myself and growing stronger. It is a chance to have heart felt talks with my father unexpectedly and make PLANS for the future because we believe in it. It is a chance to feel more loving towards my family because they will always be there for me.

For all of this I am extremely grateful and I feel serene. I trust that things will become better, soon, and this will have been an opportunity to grow.

Tasty deliciousness

2010-01-22T13:22:00.003+01:00

It has been a pretty cold winter here in Amsterdam, with snow and ice which makes going around by bike a mess! I've found myself staying in home more peacefully, reading, watching movies and cooking delicious recipes. This recent one I had tried already once but this time it came out really well, maybe because of the organic veggies, who knows.

Pumpkin and Egg-plant green curry

Very simple. Cut a small pumpkin into small pieces about 2x1cm and do the same with the egg-plant. Chop and onion and cook it a little in olive oil, salt and peper it. Then add the veggies, when they are a little 'golden' pour a can of coconut milk into the pan and let simmer until the veggies are soft and tasty (Id say about 20mn). Near the end, add 2 table spoons of green curry paste (or more if you like it spicy!). I eat this with rice and it warms me from the inside.

Enjoy!

Man on wire

2010-01-11T22:00:00.005+01:00

Man on wire is an amazing documentary about a tightrope walker in the 70s whose dream is to tie a cable between the Twin Towers and walk across. It is a truly amazing story told with very much emotion by the people who helped organise this 'coup'. I was hooked from beginning to end...

Some friends had told me about it and I watched it last week. Funnily enough it is one of the sources of inspiration in the Mondo Beyondo course I have started. Seems like a sign that this was preparation for listening to my own dreams ;-)

Welcoming the new year

2010-01-07T21:28:00.006+01:00

I am happy that this new year is here. Not because I didn't enjoy last year (on the contrary it was a year full of learning, many travels, the starting of this blog and regular journalling...) but more because I am excited in what this year has in store for me. If the first days of this new year are to set the tone for the next 12 months then I am stoked: time spent with good friends, outdoors trying new activities, enjoying the elements (fresh air, snow storm, sunshine), and indoors playing games and getting to know each other better... as always the simple pleasures of life.

I welcome this new year with arms wide open like this little guy sitting in my street one day on my way home from work. Imperfect, but ready to take on all this year will bring me!

Documentaries about the environment

2009-12-11T14:58:00.005+01:00

I haven't written in quite a while. There are several reasons for that. One great thing lately has been that I've enjoyed the IDFA ( the yearly International Documentaru Festival in Amsterdam). This year I took the time to look at what I wanted to see and booked tickets for 5 documentaries, mainly about environmental issues. Here are some tips if you can get your hands on these films:

Garbage Dreams is about young boys in Cairo, from the Zaballeen population that collect garbage to recycle it. It is super interesting to follow these boys in their daily life, to hear their dreams... One key moment in the film 2 of the boys go to Wales to see the recycling techniques there and they are surprised that not everything is recycled (part of it is done automatically and small parts are not gathered) and they comment that they could do better!

Tapped is about bottled water produced by Nestle, Pepsi and Coca-Cola. Its really outrageous to see how these multinationals pump local inhabitants' water and sell it back to them for thousand times the price. In this documentary they also touch on the subject of the tons of plastic bottles that end up in nature without being recycled. Its enough to discourage anyone from buying drinks in plastic bottles.

In Earth Keepers a Canadian environmental activist explains how he got involved in it and travels around the world to meet experts who have developped solutions and projects that are simple in order to improve local environments (in terms of ecology, but often also socially). This film really makes one want to get involved, support local initiatives...

These films made me wonder "what the hell are we doing to our planet??!" and why is it so difficult to reduce our consumption or change out habits. And what can I do personnally? I will have to think about it, its a fine plan for ideas for 2010.

Illustration Friday - Unbalanced

2009-11-19T15:04:00.003+01:00

Unbalanced: not in equilibrium, mentally disordered or deranged

When I read this definition of unbalanced, this is the drawing that came to mind. It looks the way my brain feels sometimes, that is to say one part is rational, smooth, a little intricate but easy-going and relaxed, while the other half is paranoid, over-thinking, complicated and self-destructive.

I really enjoyed drawing this, the only hitch was I found out I need to invest in a pencil sharpener because colouring in the lines with flat pencils doesn't work so well. Am off to post this on IF website and see what other wonderful drawings people have come up with.

Illustration Friday - Blur

2009-11-13T11:31:00.002+01:00

"As she read his email, her heart sank..."

I've bought some new paints and sketchbook to occupy some peaceful hours at home during this winter. Sometimes its hard to know where to start so I've gone back to a website I'd seen a long time ago: Illustration Friday. Each week they give a theme for drawing and anyone can participate. Its great to have a starting point and amazing to see how many different ideas come out of the same theme. I'm going to try and do this more often. I'm off to check out this week's word :-)

I use the scanner at work which isn't optimal... so I'll have to be careful to make clearer outlines.

Mašta

2009-11-06T15:48:00.003+01:00

This website is truely wonderful. They publish Mašta, a magazine with loads of ideas of street art, guerilla art, comments on society in a beautifully couloured booklet with the aim of inspring people all over the world. It's great fun to read and there are so many cool ideas...

Messages from the universe

2009-10-30T16:05:00.002+01:00

I went to the movies with my parents who are visiting and chose to see Julia & Julie without really knowing what it was. Turns out it was a movie based on 2 true stories about many things, including writing a blog (the main character decides to blog her way through Julia Child's cookbook in a year- preparing over 500 recipes in 365 days and telling her adventures online).

I really enjoyed the movie, mainly because of the spectacular performance of Meryl Streep as a very tall and extravagant lady of the 60s. But also, I found the overlapping medium interesting, we read books, watch films, write blogs and this is now all intertwined. The character from the 1960s communicates by means of letters sent and received family and friends overseas, she works on the book with a typewriter and carbon paper. The modern girl communicates by internet via her blog with many faithful readers.

I must say I am sometimes a bit overwhelmed by modern communication means and the thousands of ways to contact people that are sometimes so impersonal. I'm a bit of a communication hermit in the sense that I do not have a facebook account, and practically never connect to msn. I might not seem very sociable or always have all the information, but I believe I end up finding out about the right things without being swamped with info. I feel the universe sends the right messages when they need to be sent and being constantly connected to internet or mobile phone doesn't make it go any faster. If anything it distracts my mind making it harder to see those signs...

Hello project

2009-10-23T16:49:00.005+02:00

Found this project on this awesome website. I adore post-it art and indulge in it sometimes at work... It reminds me I should doodle more and get those juices flowing!

The concept: draw a hello message on a post-it, scan it and they'll post it;-) Simple and fun, it's so cool to see what others have contributed.

What the hell is this blog about?

2009-10-21T14:11:00.004+02:00

I started this blog 6 months ago, at a time when I needed to use my extra thinking energy on something else than my relationship issues. I'd started a couple of other blogs in the past but usually gave up after posting a few times, usually because I did not know what to write and was afraid of being judged for what I wrote and how I expressed it.

I have a lot of trouble with self-esteem, on a good day I won't think about it, but on bad days I feel like I am out of place everywhere, have nothing interesting to say and wish I could just disappear out of view and not face my own critical inner voice.

In the end this blog has become an extension of my journal, no one around me knows about the blog so far. I am not confident enough to tell even my family or close friends, maybe that will come later. For now it is just a platform for me to express things that catch my eye, that make me happy, that I create, or inspire me, that I can save to look back on when the going gets more difficult, and I write only for myself, freely.

I like the act of blogging, the simplicity of posting and the history that builds up. I feel the tug to write after a while without posting. I love reading other blogs too and the simple joy of finding a new post or a post that really speaks to me in a particular moment. It is also a simple pleasure of modern life!

If everyone has a piercing, why can't I get one?

2009-10-16T16:14:00.006+02:00

Spent the last weekend in Turin catching up with some friends who I hadn't seen for far too long...

It was a real pleasure to be in Italy and speak the language again, taste the delicious food and generally enjoy life like italians know how to do so well.

We went for a long walk in the beautiful warm weather (very big contrast to Amsterdam in this period), through a giant market with all its wonderful fresh products, cheap clothes, flea market... Its a nice city despite being the industrial home of Fiat (employing about 80% of the people living there!).

Hungry, we stopped for delicious pizza on the corner of this beautiful little piazza, traditional with a church and this piercing on the corner of the building (made by Corrado Levi in 96). Improbable as it is it gives the square a particular twist capable of surprising the simple wanderer...

Questionning the usual

2009-10-16T15:06:00.006+02:00

This is the name of a very cool exhibition in Louisianna museum in Denmark. It was about questionning things and featured many art works including a microphone cloud, an ice room with the carcass of a race car, extremely colourful collages with pins, a radio the size of a room where you are the antenna and more.

The museum is wonderful, it is located by the sea and in nature, with spectacular views. At the same time there is a lot of room for the art works.

I loved the giant sign on the top of the museum and wish I could see this sign out my window sometimes when I need a boost! I put it in this blog as a reminder for now;-)

Inspirational bits and pieces

2009-09-18T15:48:00.004+02:00

I love making collages. I have done since I was a teenager. I always used to take my mums glossy magazines and cut them up into little pieces, gathering words, coloured pictures, making little books for my friends or home made cards with them... I'd love to see some of those collage's again. I guess it is a form of art that comes easy to me because I don't have to create from scratch, I start from something that already exists, fonts, colours, photos, drawings by someone else.

I made this collage last sunday afternoon whilst actually working on another collage which revolves around colours. This one just can really easily and I found the colourful page to stick it on. All these words inspire me and I love the fact that dutch and english are mixed... I think I may put it up somewhere where I can see it regulary and remember these important things.

Cheeky monkey

2009-09-16T22:18:00.007+02:00

These days have been insanely busy as I have been travelling to Denmark for work practically every week. I enjoy being there, especially as the weather is still quite warm, I am enjoying getting to know my collegues and am starting to have my habits there.

Our showroom is situated in the free-port, it is a very peculiar place and I enjoyed shooting these pictures on my way to work, under the sun.

Going by on the train I had often seen these huge graffitis on the top of these buildings... I asked my Danish friend about them, how she thought they had gotten there and what they said. It turns out its a kind of joke/rhyme: "what does Moller drink?" on one building, and the answer "Oller" (beer!) on the other. To think someone would paint that in such gigantic letters, it must have been one hell of a private joke. I laugh every time i see it now ;-)

Note to self:

2009-09-04T16:18:00.003+02:00

Whilst blogsurfing I fell on this site. I really like the messages like this and also many of the pictures on the flicker account. This pretty one I find a super message to remember to cultivate these things, not be passive and the results will come naturally from the universe.

La rentrée

2009-09-04T11:08:00.007+02:00

In France this time in September when you go back to school is known as 'la Rentrée'. Since I've left school and uni I live in a more timeless world and sometimes I don't even realise la rentrée is passing by. It used to be synonymous with going to see which class you would be in and which friends would be in the class with you, whether you had good or bad teachers, buying new notebooks and pens, picking what to wear on the first day and a general sad feeling about the end of the long summer holidays...

But this year I'm feeling it again. Maybe it was talking with my little sister on the phone about her rentrée, maybe it's the fact that I've moved to a new flat, maybe its that the sunny travelling season is over for now (I've used up all my holidays), maybe it's the fact that on 1st of September the weather here switched undeniably from summer to autumn with cold wind and regular showers...

***

Yesterday as I went to make my omelette I found a perfect egg with a beautiful feather on it! I see it as a positive sign linked to my moving in my new home :-)

Busy times...

2009-08-26T16:10:00.003+02:00

These are busy times. I've just been on holidays in Turkey for 2 friends' wedding. It was wonderful to catch up with them and see them wonderfully in love and saying 'Evet' to each other. Seeing my other friends was also great and I realise we haven't changed that much in the last years.

But at the same time I do feel that things have changed and are continually changing with me. I've become much more aware of my role in deciding my happiness in the last year or so. It has changed my way of seeing many things and approaching relationships. It has pushed me to live in the moment more, to be less passive, to 'go get it!', to be grateful and much more. I feel like my mojo is alive and kicking lately.

I am about to move to a new appartment where I will be living alone. I can't wait and at the same time it will be a great change. I feel like I am moving forward, upwards...

Simple pleasures of life: Yoga

2009-08-11T16:03:00.004+02:00

Yoga has been accompanying me in my self discovery trip I have been on in the last years. On arriving in Amsterdam a friend took me to the yoga school she went to, to try out a class with her on a saturday morning. I loved it, it was weird, it was intense on a physical level, the teacher would go on talking for long spells, we had to breathe funny through our noses, we even had to sing... I've been going to that center for over 3 years now about once a week. I love the feeling of anticipation I have when going there. I now make time to go to the 1/2 hour silent meditation before the class.

These classes have taught me many things, in particular that it's important to make space for the things in life that make you feel good (even if it takes a little energy to motivate yourself in the first place). Practising yoga has helped me to slow down and prioritise, regard my body as a temple and soothe my mind.

I've also learned to push myself a little more. Last week for the first time I managed a position Id been struggling with forever. It was such an amazing feeling and a wonderful reward for keeping on trying. These are lessons to apply to every aspect of life.

Unexpected arty projects

2009-08-07T13:48:00.003+02:00

All over internet people are writing, sharing, expressing themselves, through blogs, youtube, websites... Blog hopping is a never ending occupation. I love spending free time going from a blog I like onto links it recommends and getting lost from there until I dont even remember how I got to the wonderful links I discover.

Whilst busy in this activity I fell on this.is.home.project and it had just started. The idea is to have people participate, by sending first a sentence about what HOME is for them, and then in a second stage illustrating these sentences. I love the concept of collecting all these sentences from people all over the net, and seeing the recurring themes and original or unexpected ideas. I'm looking forward to seeing the illustrated results!

My sentence: At home I don't need to be anyone other than myself.

* Cryptic message in spanish

2009-07-29T09:39:00.004+02:00

I went back to get a better look at the cryptic message which turned out not to be so cryptic, but rather poetic. First I wrote it down in my notebook, then I kind of looked over my shoulder to see if people were watching, then I photographed it because I liked the hand writing and the near invisible girl with ear muffs in the picture.

As I put away my camera, a voice called out to me in Dutch 'so what does it say?'. I looked up around and up, and sitting with his feet hanging off the roof of the building on the opposite side of the street was a man who had probably been watching me the whole time.

So I translated it for him: 'To forget a very big sadness, I will kiss you in a spiral... when no one is watching...'. And the man said 'that's very nice' and smiled. I agree with him, its beautiful.

When the BFG lost his watch

2009-07-28T10:27:00.009+02:00

In Barcelona they are big on their mozaics. Gaudi laid them all over the place in colourful and wonderful ways, I couldn't stop taking pictures of them. But looking down you can also see amazing things, like this mozaic made from metallic wheels. It looks to me like a giant watch just exploded and lost parts all over the floor (spotted in the Parc de Montjuïc). A sweet reminder of the importance of looking around us and seeing the beauty in simple things.

The joy of receiving postcards

2009-07-23T10:56:00.004+02:00

Good news for those who miss receiving good old postcards, handwritten post and mail that is not just bills. We are no longer obliged to send ourselves mail like Mr Bean. I love sending and receiving letters and postcards. A few days ago I received my first postcard from a complete stranger! This wonderful card was waiting for me in the entrance of my house, sent by a German man who used to be a drummer in a band.

I discovered the Postcrossing website whilst surfing the net, it is a site where you can sign up to get in touch with thousands of other people who miss receiving interesting post and want to introduce some randomness in their lives. To me it's like the couchsurfing of mail, you never know what you're gonna get but it leads to wonderful surprises:-) Try it out, it's great to create interaction with perfect strangers and colour your day and their day with an unexpected postcard.

Things that caught my eye

2009-07-22T12:03:00.004+02:00

Last night after having a drink with a friend it was too warm to stay inside, so I decided to head out for a walk along the canals. It was so relaxing and peaceful to be walking alone in the twilight hour, and some special things caught my eye.

1. A saying written on a beam in a dutch house 'Een glimlach is een goedkope manier om je uiterlijk te veranderen' (a smile is a cheap way to change the your outer appearance) - very wise reminder of the power of simple things

2. Four large wooden golden letters with serif that spelled F L O W in a window

3. A blue and red space invader

4. A naked man watching TV in his appartment a newspaper covering his private parts (admittedly it was a very warm evening)

5. A cryptic message in spanish written at the foot of a building*

Surprise

2009-07-20T21:50:00.008+02:00

The other morning cycling on the way to work I saw some people making a giant street painting on the Prinsengracht (corner with Tuinstraat). When I passed again it was finished... Here it is:It looks great on the corner of these 2 streets. I looked it up cos I was curious. Apparently The London Police were commissioned to paint on this wall that was previously covered in ugly scribbles. They did a great job. I like the 2 guys in the graffiti machine, and the cartoon character is so smiley. Look out for these guys they are busy all around the world!

Overheard

2009-07-17T13:48:00.005+02:00

Whilst blogsurfing I found this pearl of a blog. Each day the artist draws comments overheard and chooses one to post on the website. Some of the things said are wacky in themselves, but the drawings to illustrate them are really clever and add a whole other dimension. I really admire the creativity, productivity and regularity of the postings.

Stumbling on that blog reminded me of Overheard in Amsterdam which is the same principle, short discussions overheard around town (most are in Dutch) with a funny title added by the eavesdropper. It is really fun to read through a few.

Both these sites remind me of how many absurd things we say everyday and how that is communication, which is vital to human interaction. It also reminds me of the importance of not always having an mp3 player in my ears and listening to what is going on around me.

Taking my time

2009-07-16T14:31:00.006+02:00

Lately I've been thinking about taking life slower. I feel like the last years of my life have been wonderful and very full but I also have a constant feeling that I'm running after time and that I'm really tired.

I came slowly to the realization that I wanted to do things differently. First by the hairs raising on my neck when I am told to speed up (Vite, vite!), or when I find myself struggling to keep up with some of my friends cycling… I wonder what the rush is. But I sometimes rush in my own way too.

For a long time I thought I was quite late at doing things. Now I realize it's better to do things in one's own time. The beautiful expression 'to take one's time' says EXACTLY what it should, it is my time! I don’t need to go at anyone else's rhythm than my own.

So I took a conscious decision to avoid rushing permanently. This actually is the same as living in the moment, which I find pretty hard to do sometimes since I feel like I am constantly about to rush off somewhere else or making plans.

I have listed off the top of my head the things that I feel help me or will help me to live more slowly and I want to try and follow these guidelines in the next months and years, this post being a reminder.

taking the time to cook more, trying recipes, shopping at the organic market, trying to chose fresh products grown locally

continue to practice yoga regularly, meditate and breathe

slow love, get to know people and not rush into relationships

slow travelling, staying in one place for a longer period, couchsurfing, getting to know that place better [my ultimate plan is to spend 1 year (or more!) without taking the plane, but more about this later…]

writing letters and postcards instead of emails (I have a stack of free cards ready to be filled with stories of daily adventures and sent off into the world), taking those few extra minutes to buy stamps, to walk to the post box

plan less, not try to fill every free moment

I don't think the transformation will happen overnight, but I'm curious to see what amazing things will flourish from this decision.

I'm gonna die with a twinkle in my eye

2009-07-15T09:18:00.004+02:00

Monday night I went to see The Cat Empire, one of my favourite bands, Aussie of course (because 'in Australia everything is better'!). As they started they told us it was their 700th concert! and they really rocked the Melkweg like I've rarely seen. They had the crowd shouting and jumping and there was an amazing atmosphere.

They played one of the songs which I adore: The wine song. Everytime I hear these words I get shivers down my spine and it puts a smile on my face, its a wonderful vision of life.

I'm going to die with a twinkle in my eye
'cause I sung songs spun stories
loved laughed and drank wine

Magic skies in Barcelona

2009-07-09T15:44:00.004+02:00

Danish humour

2009-07-09T15:25:00.007+02:00

With my Danish friend visiting for the weekend we talked of streetart and she told me of a famous Danish artist along those lines HuskMitNavn (literally Forget my name). His website has a lot of cool stuff on it, though you have to look for it...

This is what I liked the most. It completely cracked me up! Just imagine!!!

100 Mile Diet

2009-07-01T11:35:00.003+02:00

Surfing the net in the calm at work due to the economic crisis, I came across this blog which I found really interesting. The idea is to eat ONLY things produced within a 100 mile radius from where you live. That means only fresh products that you can trace the origin of, no pasta if you live in a region where they do not produce wheat etc.

From what the writers of the blog explain it takes a lot of creativity and research, but it also increases human contacts and is a good investment into the local community... I find it a great idea / challenge and even if I wouldn't push it to this extreme it inspires me at least to buy more locally (at the organic market at Noordermarkt for instance).

It triggers a thought about the Netherlands... Just the distance is not a sufficient criteria here, as it is not really recommendable to buy out of season food produced in greenhouses which consume huge amounts of energy.

Storypeople rocks my world

2009-06-26T12:21:00.003+02:00

Everyday in my email I receive a story from Storypeople... I find the way this guy thinks truly amazing. He manages to express really complex feelings in everyday words and relate them to random things often revealing the absurdity of the way we think and behave.

His words have been an inspiration for me to think outside the box since I discovered it. The colours and the child-like pictures suit the messages perfectly.

Dutch modern art

2009-06-26T10:51:00.004+02:00

As I was cycling to work this morning on my usual route, I came across this in Valeriusplein:

I like this customised version of the statue and the orange traffic cone like a cherry on the cake! It put a smile on my face and I stopped to photograph it. It was a reminder that even on an everyday path surprising things are to be found...

Drink to moving on

2009-06-06T15:25:00.003+02:00

Whilst writing about Amsterdam in the previous, I was listening to this song I like very much and the words came through to me really clearly all of a sudden. The words and the music seemed perfectly suited to the theme of settling down and moving on, which is eternally in some corner of average expat's or third-culture person's mind...

Ode to Amsterdam

2009-06-06T14:42:00.006+02:00

Yesterday was the 3rd anniversary of my arrival in Amsterdam! One of the questions people seem to ask the most in this city is: when did you arrive? as people come and go a lot, it's still the port it originally was with people generally settling for a short period of time before moving on.

I can't believe it has been 3 years already, at the same time I felt at home immediately in this city.

I thought it would be a good occasion to write down all the wonderful people, things and places that make me love this city like no other.

biking around town, everything is so close and easy to reach, there is no need to plan with public transport - i guess its the freedom i love of coming home however late I want, being able to go on a sunny day to discover the surroundings of the city, riding off when I need a break from everything
the Melkweg and Paradiso concert halls at walking distance from my house and all the awesome bands, known and unknown I've seen in the past 3 years and crazy dancing nights
my house, and especially my housemates who are truly amazing people, with who I had the most fun moments discussing life, dwarves and other insignificant subjects, the huge pasta dinners, the unexpected drinks and dancing, the parties that made it look like tge floor would fall through
the wonderful friends I made in the most conventional and unconventional ways and with who I lived and keep living the city
Sauna Fenomeen - my restful retreat for hours of zen, warmth and chilling out far from the rain and grey
the Vondelpark and our millions of picnics and barbecues and general relaxing at the first ray of sunlight
the beauty of the canals, that look beautiful under different lights of the sky
speaking Dutch and keeping learning this language with its amazing expressions and original books (no book has moved me in the last years as much as 'Komt een vrouw bij de dokter' by Kluun)
the amazing cultural life that Amsterdam offers - alternative cinemas, sneak preview, film festivals, concerts, squats, bars and restaurants - all of these really accessible to anyone and well organised. The OCCII that I only went to for the first time this week (twice ;-P) is the perfect example that this city still has so much amazing stuff in store for me :-)

All of this (and also much much more) is the reason why I haven't moved yet, why after 6 years of moving too much I have settled down for now. This is a city that helps you live in the moment.

Revealing mystic truths

2009-06-03T17:23:00.007+02:00

This caught my eye on my way out of the Kroller-Muller modern art museum in the Hoge Veluwe. I guess I liked the cryptic message and the way it was presented in a neon way (somehow making fun of the neon messages bombarded at us all the time).

Looked it up when I had a moment and found out the artist is Bruce Nauman, he made this in 1967 and here you can read some more. I find these explanations give it even more meaning.

Inspiring

2009-05-29T12:42:00.004+02:00

This message took my breath away...

Note to self: remember to read this regularly, enjoy every moment and 'reawaken the possibility of possibility'

It's by David Horvitz - cool website (I love the 'things for sale I will mail you')

Simple pleasures of Life - Fresh orange juice

2009-05-20T16:05:00.004+02:00

I love the pleasure of taking the time to press some fresh oranges in the morning. The action of cutting and pressing the oranges by hand is hypnotic, then scraping the pulp of the fruit so as not to lose a drop...

Drinking it immediately when it is still full of all the vitamines and tasting the goodness with each gulp is magic.

Its a wonderful start to the day :-)

Noire et Blanche

2009-05-13T09:58:00.008+02:00

This is an interesting statement for a photo made in the 20's. I love the esthetics of this picture, it's simplicity and yet all it conveys.

One afternoon with nothing else to do, we decided to make our own personal version with my sister, inspired by a book of Man Ray photographs that she had lying around.

It was a magical afternoon and the memory of the fun we had pops up everytime I look at this picture which is bluetacked to the wooden beam in my room. Surprisingly it took more time than I expected to make this reproduction: we had to take many shots, hold the light the best we could and attempt to capture the essence as well as be as true to the original as possible.

Here is the result:

Trust

2009-05-08T12:03:00.005+02:00

I like this simple saying: it says so much and it pacifies me when I suddenly feel overwhelmed by doubts.

The interpretation is left to the reader: is it a wise person formally telling someone the trust themself, or a statement encouraging to trust each other?

Amsterdam

2009-05-06T13:59:00.006+02:00

Now that Queensday madness has calmed down, I'm finding my city again... with lots of wonderful little streets which I discover anew everytime. The canals and boathouses, philosophical tags by Laser 3.14, independent shops, cute cafés...

I was already inspired by the city in 2006 when I drew this fictitious street... To think that I still have so many magic places to experience, it never stops.

The simple pleasures of life - Oil pastels

2009-05-05T20:28:00.006+02:00

I've had this box of pastels for years, maybe more than ten years. I love them and yet I don't get them out enough. I'm rediscovering the pleasures of the 'fat' colours, the bright colours and the simple joy of applying them on paper and seeing them rub off...

Remember this...

2009-05-01T15:01:00.002+02:00

when things seem over-complicated for no particular reason, when the brain makes everything into a big deal. Don't take yourself too seriously!

Puzzle

2009-04-24T08:57:00.001+02:00

Life philosophy

2009-04-23T18:51:00.011+02:00

we just don't know what it is yet. Sometimes we find out afterwards, sometimes we never find out... but it's good to keep this in mind when the going gets tough.

That's all it takes

2009-04-16T20:33:00.000+02:00