Dressing up!

Well, because today is Hallowe'en, I've decided to post a photo of myself all dressed up. I had quite a bit of choice, but in the end I chose this photo. It was taken by a professional photographer while I worked for Club Med in Tignes, France. I am dressed and made up for the "Rocky Horror Show". I was one of the chorus girls, but was completely in the front of the line-up (to the chagrin of the choreographer who was behind me). It had been put together by a German ski-teacher who liked me and my outfit looked absolutely stunning: Madonna bra, hotpants (with gold opaque tights though) and high heels.

I also put up my hair. It was quite long in those days and I would completely brush it forward, put half a toilet roll on my head and then cover it with hair again. Lots of kirby grips and even more hairspray would make it look fantastic. At the end of the evening it would take me about two hours to get it back to normal to avoid a splitting headache! The make-up (as you cannot see) is heavy and black.

Happy Hallowe'en!!!

Les pompiers

Aren't dreams funny things? We all dream in our sleep. And according to the people in the know, we dream so we can rid ourselves of the day's worries and joys and start the new day afresh. Now, I usually have the strangest dreams when I'm not doing much at all. For some strange reason...

Anyway, last night I also dreamt. Now, remember I am Dutch and talk Dutch on a daily basis. I also use a lot of English; watching telly, reading/writing blogs, reading books. I do also speak German fluently, French to a good degree and Italian to get on by.

So, when I woke up this morning I wasn't too surprised, since a few weeks ago I had dreamt in German. Last night however, I dreamt in French. Not a language I use often, which I noticed in my dream as well!

I was with my coach and wanted to park on the side of the road, behind a colleague of mine. As I was parking on the heavily sloping road, the bus tilted and dropped down the hill. I had two ladies on board as well, but they (like me) were unharmed, since the bus landed on some trees and bushes, cushioning the fall. We got towed back up to the road and again I tried to park. Again, however, the bus tilted and rolled backwards down the slope, this time with only me on the bus.

This time I couldn't get towed back up the hill though and I had to call 'les pompiers'. Now, why I had to call 'les pompiers' was a bit fuzzy to me after I woke up, because the bus wasn't on fire and I was able to get out quite easily. However, I phoned 'les pompiers', they arrived and I explained to them what happened. In that instant I showed my lack of French knowledge. I told 'les pompiers' that I wanted to park on the road, but 'la rue faisait comme ça (imagine hand gesture doing a slope of a hill) et l'autocar faisait comme ça (imagine hand gesture doing a roll down a hill) en arrière!'.

I used to dream in French a lot, while I was living in both Italy and France. I dreamt almost exclusively in English while I was living in England and for the last few years I have been dreaming in Dutch. Funny how your mind sometimes decides it gets bored with it all and gives you another language to do your dreaming in...

O is for...

Outhouse

Once upon a time, a long time ago, there weren't many houses with indoor plumbing. In fact it wasn't until the middle of last century that most homes in western Europe were fitted with indoor plumbing. Before that, they used outhouses like in the photos, chamber pots (which were often just emptied out in the streets) or holes in the ground. I think I can even remember an outhouse at my grandparents' farm, even though by the time I was born they had indoor plumbing as well.

Families living in cities weren't as lucky as people living in the country. Yes, there would still be outhouses, but they would have to be shared with all families living in the same building or even the whole street. People living in those conditions were usually the poorest of the poor and would not really have enough money for the basics. Combine that with dirty living conditions and near open sewers and you can understand people didn't live to a right old age!

Nowadays most of Europe has indoor plumbing. At least the western part of this continent does, I am not sure about the poorest areas in the east. And I must admit, when it's raining outside and there's a cold wind blowing, I am glad I don't have to step outside to use the bathroom!

For more O-words from around the world, please check out ABC Wednesday and join in the fun!

How Jane Austen dealt with the stricken

"It's a truth universally acknowledged, that a zombie in possession of brains, must be in want of more brains"

Several months ago (it must have been June), I was wandering in a bookstore in London when my eye was caught by a book. Of course this is not unnatural if you're in a bookstore, but this book was a bit different. It was about zombies!

Zombies and me don't really mix. I've never encountered one, I've never seen one (bar the ones in Michael Jackson's Thriller-video) and have never really felt the urge to read about them. Until...

I am a great fan of Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion, Mansfield Park (not too fond of Emma or Northanger Abbey), I've read them time and time again. So, when I wandered through that bookstore and saw a book called "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies", it wasn't a normal thing for me to pick it up. But, I figured, anyone who can come up with a title like that, deserves my money for the title alone. So, I bought it. Brought it home with me. Started reading it. Put it away again because of the stupidity. Couldn't find it anymore.

Fast forward about three months. During all those boring days on rail replacement service recently, I needed something to keep me sane (apart from chocolate). So, I went out to find the book again. Which I found again in the end and put in my bag to take to work.

What can I say? I finished it, because I wanted to know what would happen to Lydia Bennet and her suitor Mr Wickham. I wanted to know why the zombies were eating cauliflower (there are drawings in the book). And of course I wanted to know whether Elizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy would end up together or whether they would fall prey to the herd of unmentionables.

Despite the large number of (random) killings, the introduction of a few new characters (needed as zombies) and the killing of a few favourites, the book was actually quite funny. There were even several moments where I laughed out loud.

Now, on account of me telling the world that I was reading this book under the little header of 'on my nightstand', I got an e-mail several weeks ago. Some lady from some publisher's office in the USofA had seen I was reading this book (or trying at the time) and was wondering whether I would like to be put on their mailing list. And then a couple of days later I got another e-mail asking me whether I would like to try 'Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters'. So, I sent an e-mail back with my address and lo and behold: yesterday afternoon a package from the USofA arrived. Containing said book. So, despite me not being a fan of the fantasy-horror-creepy genre, I now am in proud possession of not one, but two of those books. Hopefully the second one will prove to be as good as the first!

What I miss

Skating in Swindon

Last night as I was working, I got to talking to a lady on the bus. Somehow (I don't recall how) we got to the subject of what I missed about living and working in England. Now, first I think I need to give you a little background information.

I moved to England in 1992, almost straight after the Club Med winter season in Tignes-Val Claret. It was the beginning of June and I arrived with two overloaded suitcases. I was shown to my room at the back of the kitchen and loved the fact that I had my own bathroom. By the end of June I hadn't made many friends yet, but it was my birthday anyway. No money, no friends, not even a phone-call from home to wish me happy birthday: I was miserable. Fortunately it picked up though. I was invited to my boss's home for a barbecue, I started hanging out with the other foreigners working in the restaurant (I worked at reception) and slowly I began to find my place.

In early spring of 1993 I got fired from being a receptionist on account of my English: it was too good! I was allowed to stay in the hotel and chose to work in the restaurant, where I stayed until October 1994. I made friends with several of the waitresses and waiters, I always had my lunch at the same table as the gardeners and maids, I passed my driving test and got a car. I was happy.

However, during the summer of 1994, my happiness was diminished. My male Italian colleagues found it quite hard to work for a woman apparently and during work it was often hard for them to do as I told them to. Besides that, because of my elevated status I wasn't allowed to do any of the 'fun' stuff anymore. Every day was the same. By late September the stress was really getting to me. I drank coffee as if it was water, which in turn gave me massive migraines. I had to go home on one or two occasions because of it. When I went on holiday to Ibiza early October, the only thing I could think of was: "I've got to back to work in two weeks". And not in a good way. After my return, I wrote a letter of resignation and on November 1st I left.

I arrived home on November 2nd and immediately knew I had made a massive mistake. During the Christmas period I was homesick and living at home was (apart from getting to know my sister) not all it's cracked up to be!

So, what do I miss? The camaraderie, the togetherness, the fun after work. I had it during my two seasons working for Club Med and I had it in England. And I miss it. I love being on my own, but the fun and laughter and 'we're all in this together'-feeling is something I would love to have again!

Food, glorious food

I saw this the other day on Baino's Banter, a blog I had never read before (but will go to again), but this sounded to good to pass up on.

1. What's your number 1 comfort food?

I don't really have a comfort food, at least not one that stands out. I do love sweet food though, so I will tend towards the chocolate/dessert/sweet end of the food spectrum!

2. If you were stranded on a dessert island, what food would you want to have with you to survive on?

Anything that doesn't tickle too much when swallowing it like bugs and beetles...

3. What are your signature dishes? (What are you famous for making?)

Lasagne, although it's been a long time since I last made it. It takes me three to four hours and I make everything: from the sauce to the lasagne leaves. I will make it soon again.

4. It's Friday night, you don't know what to cook, what do you opt for?

Depending on what's in the cupboard I can go for anything from a fried egg to minute-noodles, from semolina pudding to pancakes.

5. What's your ultimate food weakness?

Cinnamon Icecream. Mmmm, lovely!

6. What food can you soooooo not eat?

Mushrooms! They are so gross! They slither in your throat, they smell awful, they are just yuck!

7. You need a drink, you grab a ...?

Milk. In order for my nails to stay healthy and strong, I need at least one glass of milk a day. During the summer I have to remind myself though to drink enough water as well, otherwise I will get urinary infections (or is that too much information?).

8. What's the most decadent dish you ever had?

Oysters probably, although I think they are highly overrated: either they are salty or they are sour because of the lemon. Either way I don't like them one bit.

9. What's your favourite type of food?

Simple one-dish meals like stews. Hearty and heartwarming.

10. Favourite dish?

Cinnamon ice-cream. Oooohhh...

11. If your partner could take you to any restaurant, where would you go?

Purely on location: there is a restaurant quite close to where I live that is built in a former watertower. While dining the top level slowly revolves and you have to eat to a certain speed in order to get every course, because the doors from the kitchen don't revolve with the rest! On taste? I don't really have a favourite restaurant, probably due to the fact I have to eat out a lot due to my job. I would prefer him cooking for me, provided he would serve a fantastic dessert of course!

12. Soup or salad?

Not a big fan of either really. It also depends on what type of soup/salad. During the winter months I will eat Snert (or Pea Soup), a Dutch dish consisting of peas, potatoes, sausage, bacon, meat, turnip, carrot and other hardy vegetables. It's accompanied by a thin slice of rye bread covered with another type of bacon. If your spoon cannot stay upright in the soup, the soup is not well made!

13. Buffet, take-out or sit-down?

If I go to a restaurant I don't want to make dinner, I don't want to serve dinner and I definitely don't want to do the washing-up! So, no question: Sit-down!

14. What's the most impressive meal you ever made?

When I still lived at home aged 17 or so, my parents were out for the day. I decided to cook them dinner and got all the ingredients (boxes etc) to make a nice Chinese meal. I wrote everything out before hand, so I would be on time with everything and when my parents and sister came home there was a complete Chinese meal waiting for them. It tasted really good and my parents were very pleased as well!

15. Do you consider yourself a good cook?

I am decent enough. I have never poisoned anyone (yet). I am alright in the easier dishes, but if I were to apply myself, I might even be able to prepare harder dishes.

16. Do you know what vichyssoise is?

I think it's a fish soup. But, for the sake of this, I will look it up as well, just so I can see I am right. Ah, no, it's not. So my answer is: no, I don't know what a vichyssoise is!

17. Who's your favourite TV-cook?

I don't really have one. Although Ainsley Harriot (yes, he's a cook)... Yep, Ainsley Harriot!

18. Can you name at least three famous cooking personalities?

Apart from the above? James Martin (great face), Jamie Oliver (annoying little man), Two hairy bikers, Nigella Lawson. Does it in any way show I watch a lot of British food programs?

19. Homemade or homemade from a box?

Hm, tough one. Homemade. Yes, definitely, homemade. Although muffins, cookies and the like are perfectly homemade from a box as well. Oh, it's a toss-up. Either can be really good!

20. Tag three people to reveal all...

If you feel a calling right now to do this little questionaire: please do so. If not: still the best of friends (as we would say in the Netherlands)

Camera Critters 16

This is the last of the photos I will show you of the zoo I went to several weeks ago. But how can you resist this little face? I don't know what type of fish it is, so if anyone can shed any light on that?

For more critters from around the world, please check out Camera Critters and join in the fun!

Grump

I don't often have a really bad day mood-wise, but yesterday was a top one! It was alright until about 10am when I woke up. A few minutes later I got a call from my boss: instead of doing my own shift, I now had to do another shift, doing the same as the day before. Driving for twenty mintues, standing still for twenty-five. So, I was in a foul mood!

Anyway, as I drove towards the starting point, my mood dropped and dropped until I feared it would go underground. I started work and my mood didn't lift. In the end there was only one thing for it: sweets! So, I got myself a big bag of marshmellows and three chocolate bars and went away to become merry again.

It didn't quite work out that way, but eating the marshmellows certainly helped me get out of the doldrums enough to become half way okay again. Not completely mind, that was asking a bit much.

And what's in store today? The same shift as yesterday! Up and down the dike. Fortunately I still have my chocolate bars left over from yesterday...

Goodnight

That'll be me in a minute. Not quite in the same bed anymore though: it's now a kingsize one. I don't stick my thumb in my mouth anymore either and the doll has long ago made room for a teddy (Brom and he wears a bikini) that's on my nightstand.

The reason I am going to bed so late (3am)? I got home from work just over an hour ago. I wanted a little snack, needed to harvest some trees (Facebook: so addictive!) and just chill out a bit. Now however, it's time to go to bed!

Goodnight...

N is for...

Nissen hut

Whenever I read books that have their story take place during WW2, they often talk about Nissen huts. And I never knew exactly what it was. Until I went to the Imperial War Museum Duxford (England) earlier this year and as well as all the old aeroplanes, there was this hut. And it turned out to be a Nissen hut.

So, what is a Nissen hut exactly? Well, it is a hut invented and built for housing troops during WW1. Due to its semicircular shape, the hut deflected shrapnel and bomb blast, making it a perfect bomb shelter. It is the first pre-fab building and it would fit on the back of a three-ton truck. It's built up of a metal frame, covered with corrugated iron. The door is made of wood and the windows are not glass, but oiled cloth. Six men could have it standing within two hours!

They were used for housing troops, kitchens, Mess rooms, storage rooms, bathrooms, small hospitals, stables and of course bomb shelters.

The hut was invented in 1916 by Peter Nissen, a Norwegian American who joined the Royal Engineers during WW1.

For more N words, please check out ABC Wednesday and join in the fun!

Update: the Quonset (USA) and the Romney (UK) hut are both derived from the Nissen hut.