California is magical.
This is not a romantic interpretation, but a conclusion based on facts.
Take two incidents that happened yesterday.
In Barnes & Nobles, a huge and beautiful bookshop, a paperback was bought.
It was recommended by one of the many fervent and loyal blog readers and those advices are always followed up.
Stieg Larsson’s “The girl with the dragon tattoo”.
A popular book: Mr. Larsson cashed in on already 21 million copies sold.
After the purchase of the book different other activities filled the beautiful sunny and warm day when it was time to have lunch.
Of course a Japanese restaurant was selected to have a bento box with a cup of green tea.
At one of the tables a man was sitting reading a book.
After some time it was discovered that the book he was reading was “The girl with the dragon tattoo”.
The book that was just bought in Barnes & Nobles.
Immediately the man was approached to inform him about this weird coincidence.
If it was that.
It didn’t make him feel more comfortable.
One could see he didn’t know what to think of the event.
A man approaching and talking in a public restaurant about something connecting.
Maybe he was too involved in the book which is a crime story and he believed that the whole thing was a set up for an affaire du coeur or a rough robbery in the planning.
But nevertheless, how often does it happen that a book is bought and one hour later someone is spotted reading that very book?
But the magic of California didn’t stop there.
A visit some time later to the Best Buy shop.
To inquire about loudspeakers for the truck as one is deforming the music.
Leaving the shop the section of music CD’s was passed and a stop was made.
To check if any CD was there with music of a band called “The Jefferson Airplane”.
Nothing interesting was found, the shop was left to get into the Hyundai car.
The engine was started, the XM radio came on with music and the song heard was of “The Jefferson Airplane”…
The song titled “Miracles”.
If only you believe like I believe, baby
We'd get by
If only you believe in miracles, baby
So would I
Now, again, how often does it happen that a person looks for a CD in a shop of a particular band to return to the car, to switch on the radio and then to hear that very band?
It can only be because it is in California.
Remember, of all places, E.T. was also left behind in Los Angeles..
Back in the USA.
And therefore landed in another culture and tradition.
Where people interact so differently compared to the ones in Europe and elsewhere.
But because life is not lived from one standard pack of attitudes, but instead enjoyed by being flexible adapting to wherever destiny brings, it is great to have returned to America.
Especially to see the friends again and to be whirling in a halo of warmth and affection.
Unfortunately for the blog and its fervent and loyal readers, nothing remarkable can be reported about the journey from Europe to the USA.
No juicy and entertaining stories about failing hotels or crashing airplanes.
KLM, the airline from the Netherlands, although associated with Air France, Delta and Northwest, has their relatively new Jumbo’s and very well trained crew.
Most friendly and excellent service.
It was of course not the fault of KLM that close by in the airplane a couple and a single mother where traveling having decided to take their siblings with them.
These children didn’t like flying and for unknown reasons had decided to inform as many fellow passengers about this unfortunate point of view.
The way they expressed themselves was not by sending a letter of complain to their mother but by, and this most loyal and fervent blog readers may have guessed, loudly testing their vocal cords.
Their folds of membranous tissue that projected inward from their sides of the larynx to form a slit across their glottis in their throat, and whose edges vibrate in the airstream to produce their loud crying voice..
One child, already able to escape from the mother’s supervision to crawl in the aisle blocking the way of the stewardess balancing in her hands a tray with plastic cups filled with orange juice and pestering other passengers urgently on the way to the bathroom, was particularly opposed to being strapped in during take off, landing and in times of turbulence.
Every time the parents tried to put the safety belt around the boy’s body, a wrestling competition took place with the boy maniacally and desperately and hysterically screaming, protesting, resisting and fighting.
“I don’t WANT the safety belt around me ! I don’t WANT !!”
Obviously the boy, until then in his life, had a training learning him that what he wants is respected.
Others would call this that he is spoiled to death and would say, give the boy a whack with a baseball bat on his bare bottom, apply the safety belt and then ask him: “What else?”
Because in the end, you are not sitting only by yourself in an airplane to Los Angeles.
There are more than 300 fellow travelers close by who may not be too interested in what this young son exactly wants and not wants.
As life likes to joke, the two passengers, who were from Holland, sitting next to the pioneering photographer, were married for 25 years and to celebrate this, on their way to Hawaii.
Hand in hand full of late date romance but very much disturbed by the concert the children had decided to perform on this journey.
The fact happened to be, and this was most painful, that this happy and long lasting couple had never been able to have children.
They explained this was a twist of nature: they very much had liked to have siblings but it was not to be.
And now their long awaited happy trip was sabotaged by these small size bastards.
The man said that parents that travel in airplanes with children must give them tranquilizers.
To knock them out and have them travel like zombies.
The woman said that children should only travel in airplanes if the parents had very good and convincing reasons.
Not for a holiday, she said.
It must be more serious than that.
And, she said, not so much for the other passengers.
Mainly for the parents who feel ashamed and frustrated.
But most of all for the children who have a most traumatic experience.
The pioneering photographer had of course something to say as well.
It was noticed that all the mothers and fathers of the traveling children had forgotten something most important.
To bring toys, paper and pencils, beloved dolls, mini cars, etc
Items from the world of the child, preferably the kid attached to them, that comes from the safe home it normally lives in.
Items that can challenge and entertain the child.
So that it has something to do on the long flight.
And feels not so afraid.
When leaving the plane, the child that had been crying for over ten hours non stop was quiet and calm.
And looked in the eyes of the debarking passengers.
Who probably were full of hate.
And understanding.
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For sure, every fervent and loyal blog reader remembers the recent story about meeting a media mogul and the revelation of shyness.
The powerlessness to approach the authority and present the project “The most beautiful people in the world” to him.
Coming to the conclusion sometimes there is a high level of cowardice present.
Yesterday was an opportunity to take revenge.
To show the world cowardliness can be overcome.
That it is a big boy nevertheless promoting the project “The most beautiful people in the world” .
There was an invitation to be interviewed in a well known Dutch radio program.
Therefore on Saturday the trip was made to the city of Utrecht where the program took place in an old fashioned bar.
Arriving in the bar, as a guest of the radio program, the request was to go to a special room where other invited persons were waiting.
One of them was Ronald Plasterk.
He is a 53 year old Dutch politician of the Labour Party.
Before, he was a molecular geneticist writing thesis like "Inversion of the G segment of bacteriophage Mu: analysis of a genetic switch".
Mr. Plasterk has been Minister of Education, Culture and Science in the past and is now member of the House of Representatives.
He is the financial spokesman of his political party and because of the economic crises he therefore is very often in the limelight.
Saturday this Mr. Plasterk, the former Minister of a Government, the current member of Parliament, the scientist who knows everything about how the G segment inverses, was sitting at the same table.
Alone and daydreaming.
Immediately the memory of being unable to approach the media mogul was painfully remembered and instantly the mind was made up not to have this happen a second time.
Politely a personal introduction was made and he asked what was the reason to be also in the radio program.
When explained he said he had heard about the project “The most beautiful people in the world”.
He had seen it in the newspaper.
Besides that, he had nothing more to say.
He looked away to continue his daydreaming.
Not interested in a conversation.
Meanwhile the Queen of Dreams had joined the table and she was introduced to Mr. Plasterk.
An opportunity to try again to have a conversation with him.
It was explained to the former Minister of Culture that the project “The most beautiful people in the world” was made without any subsidizing by the Government or sponsoring of commercial companies.
In the coming years the Dutch Government is going to reduce its budget with 18 billion Euros and for the Arts in Holland this means a reduction with 220 million Euros.
Less money to finance projects, exhibitions, purchases, etc
This is something Mr. Plasterk is dealing with as well.
As a politician with a focus on Culture a deduction of over 20 % of the total budget for the arts is something he as a Labour representative does not like at all.
By explaining that the project “The most beautiful people in the world” was performed without Government assistance it was made clear that global art projects could still be made.
That other ways of financing were available.
This remark triggered a long monologue from the man who knows everything about how the G segment inverses explaining that the majority of the artists in the Netherlands manage to make works and do projects without Government financial assistance.
This was an astonishing statement because also the Queen of Dreams knows that this is completely untrue.
The majority of the many artists in the Netherlands exist based on Government support.
There is no book, no major exhibition and no major art-project in the Netherlands or the Government has been requested money to make it possible.
After this idiotic monologue again Mr. Plasterk looked away, indicating that as for him, the conversation had ended.
So we all three stayed there sitting around that table: the arrogant man silent and absent.
The other two pleasantly chatting away.
One thing though in spite of Mr. Plasterk’s attitude: he was offered the business card which he put in a pocket of his jacket.
Later, downstairs, the interview took place in front of an audience in the large bar.
Returning, Mr. Plasterk was sitting right behind waiting for his turn to be interviewed.
He knocked on the shoulder and asked if he could see the photo book of the project “The most beautiful people in the world” .
The Queen of Dreams, sitting in a better position to hand it over, gave it to him.
And then she noticed he went through the book without seeing that each page can be folded open.
The man who knows everything about how the G segment inverses missed therefore most of the project “The most beautiful people in the world”.
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The lunch appointment was exactly in the same place as on November 25, 2009.
The restaurant of Schiphol Airport near Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
This is where the Queen of Dreams was met almost one year ago for the first time.
To start a roller coaster of love, passion, affection, trouble and horror that ended three months ago.
But yesterday, as if nothing had happened, on the other side of the table, she was eating a tomato soup and drinking a tonic and was good company.
There is a delicate beauty in this.
Two persons that saw love develop between them.
A love that became impossible.
To have to separate.
But then to remain on speaking terms.
To bend the relationship into friendship.
Like David Bowie wrote:
THE HEART'S FILTHY
LESSON
There's always the Diamond friendly
Sitting in the Laugh Motel
The Heart's filthy lesson
With her hundred miles to hell
Oh, Ramona - if there was only something between us
Other than our clothes
Something in our skies
Something in our blood
It's the Heart's filthy lesson
Falls upon deaf ears
Oh Ramona, if there was only some kind of future
And these cerulean skies
Something in our skies
Something in our blood
Paddy oh Paddy,
I think I've lost my way
I'm already five years older I'm already in my grave
Will you carry me?
Paddy, what a fantastic death abyss
It's the Heart's filthy lesson
Tell the others.
See for yourself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxED_26Y7XY&feature=related
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One of the many photo projects performed in the last forty years was documenting one particular woman.
Henny.
Starting when she was 16 years old and working in a biscuit factory in 1977.
Photographing all the different aspects of her life and publishing this in a photo book.
Henny in 1976
Next, every five years, again she and her family was documented and the results published in photo books.
In total five photo books have been made on Henny covering over 25 years of her life.
The last book was published in 2001 and as of then Henny had no appetite anymore to be documented for everybody to see.
The reason was that in the last book she had revealed dramatic things about her childhood and this had resulted in serious repercussions from her family.
Because of this situation contact between Henny and the photographer became sporadic.
Phone numbers and e-mail addresses changed and for several years there was no contact.
But yesterday the decision was made to go and see her.
Henny lives in a small town in the south of the Netherlands that can only be reached by public bus or private car.
There is no door bell and in the front garden is a huge tractor tire.
It was about 3.30 pm and Henny’s youngest daughter Charlotte, now 15, opened the door.
She didn’t recognize the photographer.
She called her mother who was in bed and when Henny came to the door she was full of emotions of joy and surprise.
Because they had heard that their friend and photographer had died.
While now he was alive and well knocking on their door.
The reunion was wonderful, warm and as if no years had passed.
Immediately intimate, loving and totally open.
Henny and her family - sept. 23, 2010
As always, many things had been happening in the life of Henny.
Dramatic and surprising events.
Personally, an emotional and fascinating experience to hear her tell her story of the last nine years.
But professionally, everything screaming inside to make a new book about Henny.
So interesting the things happening in her life.
And so strong, emotional, unique and overwhelming.
Of course this was discussed.
To make a new book about her and her family and the extraordinary life they have.
Although initially there was opposition, little by little a slight interest could be noticed.
A book published on the life is also a way to be different.
To have the personal moment of fame and glory.
To stand out.
To be someone.
The idea for a new book is born and the relationship is revived.
It has become an option again.
If this will happen, Henny will be one of the first persons whose life is documented covering almost 35 years.
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There is a well known square in Amsterdam.
Called the “Leidseplein”.
Crossing this square yesterday a very famous TV and theatre producer was spotted by the name of Joop van den Ende.
He was accompanied by his wife and an entourage including a photographer.
Joop van den Ende
Not too far from the square, a bench was used to sit down and make a phone call.
Soon Joop van den Ende appeared with his entourage and right in front they started a photo session.
He and his wife were photographed in different poses.
Joop van den Ende is a multimillionaire of high influence.
Having companies in the media and probably the most important authority in that field.
When seeing this man being photographed the idea was born to approach him, offer the business card and say:
“Excuse me, Mr. van den Ende but I have just finished a worldwide photo project showing the most beautiful people in the world. In a few weeks the photo book of this photo project will be ready and I invite you to visit the website and see the most beautiful people for yourself.
Please let me know after seeing them what you think.”
The thinking was that before his security, his assistant and the photographer would interrupt and protect him, this message could be given to him.
He probably would listen and maybe go to the website.
And from then any thing could happen.
Which includes nothing at all or some involvement of one of his companies.
So, the photo session continued and meanwhile this plan of action was considered.
But there was no jumping up and a steadfastly approach of the media tycoon.
Because the protagonist was caged in feelings of insecurity.
Not having enough courage for such a bold action.
Full of doubts while the thinking was coming up with more reasons not to simply walk up to the man and calmly explain in short the project “The most beautiful people in the world”.
It was the worst time in the life.
One side wanting to approach the man, one side being a coward and too intimidated.
Obviously Joop van den Ende had spotted the dualistic photographer sitting on the bench.
He noticed how he was observed.
But he made no move.
Eventually it was time to leave while the photo session was still going on.
Walking away it happened that Joop van den Ende was passed by at less than one meter.
That’s three feet.
And he openly looked right into the eyes with friendliness and kindness.
And even then, fervent and loyal blog readers, there was too much intimidation, shyness, cowardice and fear to simply speak a few words to this man and offer him a business card.
The next appointment was with very dear friends and immediately they were briefed about the total failure.
Explaining what had happened did the feeling of being a coward grow.
What was there to lose, the friends asked.
Would Joop van den Ende not have listened?
Not have accepted the business card?
And the more it was realized how inadequate life had been lived, the more feelings of shame filled the heart.
It is hard to live with the knowledge to be sometimes a coward.
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Now life is in a small house of a friend.
This friend has never been met.
There have been a few e-mail communications and a few things are known about her but in general she is a totally unknown.
This makes it so interesting to be in this small house.
It is decorated and there are many objects and each item tells something about who she is.
Step by step things are learned about her.
Aspects discovered.
Where are her interests.
What she is doing.
Her house tells she is a very nice person.
There are two huge cats who are in spite of their nature very friendly and shyless.
And soon one can understand her life is centered around two things.
One is her boyfriend.
And the other is the yoga she is practicing.
And it is obvious why there are these two centers: it is a woman who is full of love.
Celebrating life in a simple and honest and pure way.
It is a privilege to be in this house.
To enter and stay in a cosmos of quality.
Her name is Patricia.
Which means: noble.
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As of June 15 life has been in Europe.
In the Netherlands, in Poland and in France.
Living with one small suitcase and one bigger one.
Moving from one apartment to the next: whatever living space happened to be available.
Meanwhile being involved in a solo exhibition in Amsterdam, giving consults to students and professional photographers, separating from the Queen of Dreams and most of all producing the new book of the project “The most beautiful people in the world” .
This period of European life and work is coming to an end.
Next week there will be a flight to Los Angeles.
Leaving the project “The most beautiful people in the world” on its own to move forwards by itself.
Everything is prepared for this to happen and only a light supervision by Internet methods will be necessary.
It will be life in the Fuso Szulc again soon and many times a day the thinking wanders to El Triple and to Boca del Salado.
The two locations that will initially be visited: the peaceful places for contemplation and healthy living.
It is imagined how it will be again to live in total peace and exercising the ascetic way.
There is even a longing for this because it is the closest to the center of the personal being.
After the extremely hectic time of the last three months a meditative and physical healthy situation will be warmly welcomed.
Finally peace and harmony again.
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She said, but then you are very busy.
In spite of everything that has happened there are still telephone conversations and occasionally meetings on neutral territory.
But to be very busy, as she was imagining, is an unknown concept.
One thing is done followed by another thing.
And that is always the situation.
Never it happens that one thing is done not followed by another thing.
Even lazy people live by this rule: they watch TV and then get a beer from the fridge followed by a bite and then a nap.
A series of small events that fill their lives as much as the series of events that take place in the life of the general manager of Pepsi Cola.
Therefore, nobody among us is more important than anybody else.
We all do things, one thing after the other thing, and also our excrements are colored in the same way.
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It is still dark in Brittany, France and on this Sunday morning most people still sleep.
But not the persons that are full of excitement for traveling today.
Again moving from one country to the other.
From one village to a new town.
From one house to the next.
But underneath is a violent and strong undercurrent of desire for returning to the simplicity of living that is practiced in Mexico.
In Europe now, publishing a photo book, life is covered by a melange of many aspects.
Some aspects pleasant, some complicated, some most annoying, some amusing, some irritating, some lovely, some disappointing, some enlightening.
All together they group around living and need to be carried and digested and solved and eventually left behind.
To be open again for the Pacific Ocean, the endless view where pelicans fly by and every aspect of life is connected to nature.
Where noting is complicated.
Where nothing is stressful.
.
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In the night, together with journalist Karen Meirik, driving the comfortable Citroen C5 from the town of Saint Malo to Vannes crossing Brittany in France from the north to the south.
On small roads through dark forests and nobody else on the road.
The atmosphere was magic and fairytale like.
The age old trees sliding away around the smoothly moving car and the bright light shining from the headlamps illuminating a scene that could have any moment a giant come out of the woods.
Or maybe some dwarfs accompanied by a fairy.
Around the bend the road entering a huge cavern full of candles and the witch with her sharp pointed hood sitting on a throne for magical potents to serve.
This is the area, Karen Meirik explained, where people believed there were dwarfes, witches, giants and other fairy tale characters.
The forest at the time was so deep and mysterious and the people in several ways lacking appropriate knowledge, that a whole universe of weird characters was invented.
In which they strongly believed.
But those days are over.
Science has progressed and the forest is not deep anymore.
Hobbits are existing but only in books and fantasies.
Like the giants and the fairy and the dragon.
But while driving on the small and dark French road a new thought developed between the two friends.
That the people have lost believe in the characters of the fairy tales but a new imagination has replaced it.
Now we live in a time that many people think aliens exist.
Creatures from other planets that secretly come to Earth where they do weird things.
It seems these aliens mainly group and manifest themselves in the USA where magazines about them are published.
And films are made showing the aliens and nightly radio programs have witnesses tell their stories about close encounters.
The aliens are today’s representatives of the fairies and dwarfes and giants of the past.
Filling up holes in our knowledge.
Calming our fears for what we don’t know yet.
The road through the forest with the fairies and the aliens came to an end in front of a lovely house in a romantic village.
Where a kind man was waiting with warm herbal tea.
And a cookie.
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Great efforts and huge investments have been made in Europe to create a web of high speed trains.
And this is close to complete accomplishment.
One now can take high speed trains, and we are talking about trains going over 300 km per hour, from Amsterdam to London to Berlin to Copenhagen to Rome and many other places in Europe.
Very well, the tracks are there, the trains too and then human beings come and fuck up the whole thing.
This is the subjective conclusion after a high speed train trip today from Amsterdam in the Netherlands to the city of Vannes in France.
Step one.
Or, first stumbling.
A courageous traveler can go to the Internet, surf to the website of the high speed trains and book the trip.
The ticket appears eventually on the screen and can be printed out.
Sophisticated and handy.
The traveler presents the home printed ticket to the conductor in the train and with a special electronic reader he will sanction the journey.
Good system.
For the traveler: no hassle and easy going.
For the high speed train company: easy business of selling tickets.
But then a strange twist is man made in this purchasing system.
Tickets for the high speed train can only be bought from the website seven days or more in advance.
If the traveler wants to train six days from now or less, the system refuses.
Now, fervent and loyal blog readers, what to do?
What have they come up with to get a train ticket anyway at shorter notice than seven days?
You must go to a major train station, stand in line, buy a ticket from a person behind a counter and pay an extra € 10 handling costs.
In the Netherlands there are only five railway stations where you can do this.
If you live too far away from one of those train stations, high speed train tickets won’t work.
It is puzzling why they have created this inadequate system of selling tickets.
Isn’t the principal of good selling that a customer should be able to come in and spend money any time?
We know the answer is yes but this fundamental marketing knowledge hasn’t reached the manager of the high speed train ticket office yet.
Step two.
Objective fact: high speed train is supposed to leave at 10.15 h from Central Station in Amsterdam.
There is no high speed train at that time but there are a lot of people waiting on the platform.
Eventually, after half an hour, the train appears.
The passengers board.
The train is full of dirt: the remains of the passengers who just traveled from Paris to Amsterdam.
The train was not cleaned.
The chief of the conductors gets on the PA.
Sorry, sorry, we are late and that the train is dirty but let’s go.
After about 45 minutes the high speed train slowly comes to a stop.
Beautiful meadows all around.
All the lights go out and the AC stops working.
The chief of the conductors gets on the PA.
Sorry, sorry, we lost power: the mechanic is trying to fix it.
Eventually the train continues but at a snail pace.
Approaching Brussels the chief of the conductors gets on the PA.
Sorry, sorry, but this train can’t continue.
It is broken.
Please leave the train in Brussels and board another train on the other side of the platform.
The cripple high speed train stumbles into Brussel’s railway station and the passengers get out of the wreck.
There is no other train on the other side of the platform.
The chief of the conductors gets on the PA.
Please go to platform six.
Many people have luggage.
Or children and their toys and equipment.
Now they have to carry everything down long stairs, through an underground corridor and up a long stairway again.
Everybody boards the new train, find the assigned seats when the chief of the conductors gets on the PA.
Soon we will leave, he promises.
The high speed train arrives in Paris with a delay of two hours.
Many passengers miss their connection.
Everyone gets a document with which one can get 25 % of the ticket price back.
The train is fast.
But the people not yet.
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Last night was dinner with dear friends.
A man, a woman, a daughter and a son.
It is a happy family and the children therefore are in balance and not screaming.
They had an interesting anecdote to tell about how they organize their family life concerning eating.
Every day another member of the family can say what will be for dinner.
So, the young daughter may say on Monday: pancakes!!!
And on Tuesday the father says: Indian curry with lamb.
While on Wednesday the son wants: lasagna.
Finally on Thursday Mama wishes to eat: lentil soup.
And then the cycle continues with the young daughter again.
There are some rules though.
The family members cannot chose each time for the same dish.
Otherwise every four days it would be pancakes.
And second but most important rule is that every person is committed to actually eat the food that is served.
That can be tough, especially for the kids but they courageously go for this fabulous idea because there is a reward: every four days they can personally chose what to eat.
While talking to the children about this amazing communal composing of the daily menu they told an additional surprising thing.
The boy vomits when he has to eat the favorite dish of his sister.
And the sister has to vomit when she has to eat the favorite dish of her brother.
They are funny, kids.
You don’t need to be a psychologist to sense that this vomiting is a thing not coming from the stomach but from the mind.
Therefore, the two kids were asked if they had any idea why they had to vomit from each other’s favorite food.
They had no clue.
They were asked why they would not vomit from their parent’s favorite food.
They didn’t know either: they just stared into eternity.
Like life is a mysterious thing that is impossible to understand and magically makes you vomit sometimes.
But they are happy and very nice kids nevertheless.
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Yesterday witness to a weird incident.
Walking in a street in Amsterdam allowed for pedestrians only.
Two young boys disrespected this rule and drove on a bike.
They passed by while in view was a beautiful blonde white girl approaching.
They drove towards her.
Very close to her the boy, sitting on the back of the bike, spread his left arm and while passing the girl hit her in the face.
The girl screamed.
The boys continued their ride but at a higher speed.
So that nobody could catch them.
The girl, now next to the pioneering photographer, had her hand on her face and was in pain.
What to do?
No chance to run after the boys on the bike, overtake them and rock their balls.
There was a short conversation with the girl but she needed no help.
She was not seriously wounded: it was more that she was in shock.
Several persons had seen what had happened.
And all were amazed and indignant.
At the same time, there was a reluctance.
A passivity and lack of revolt.
Why would these boys do such a thing?
Something the fervent and loyal blog reader should know is that the two boys on the bike were Dutch Moroccans boys.
Their family originally came from Morocco, a country in the northwest of Africa.
They came to the Netherlands because in their own country no money could be made while in Europe they could find plenty of work.
Many of the Moroccans remained in Europe and therefore large communities can be found in Spain, France and Holland.
These young Moroccans are the second generation.
They live in two cultures: at home it is the Muslim religion and the Moroccan traditions.
While outside their home it is the liberal society of the Netherlands.
Many of these young Moroccans revolt.
They feel lost.
Because they don’t really belong to the Moroccan culture and religion anymore while they have not fully integrated in the Dutch society.
They are in between and that is bad territory.
That makes them do bad things.
In a city like Amsterdam these young Moroccan boys, lost and out of control, can easily be noticed.
They ride hip hop scooters, have their heads shaved in a specific way and wear jackets with imitation fur around the neck.
And they are never alone: always in a group.
Another characteristic is that they are loud.
Provoking, agressive, violent, arrogant, intolerant, discriminating.
For them to hit in a cowardice way a white, blonde girl in the face is fun.
And that everybody who sees this hates Moroccan boys even more is no problem to them.
They want to be hated.
Because they hate themselves.
Not belonging.
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Fulminating against the technical complexity we have planted our lives in, expressed yesterday in the daily blog, we fortunately will see there is also another side to this coin.
Fiat, the Italian car maker, now selling vehicles in the USA as well after they took over Chrysler, has put on the market a Fiat 500 that has a two cylinder engine like the French 2CV from the 1960’s.
It is a gasoline fueled engine of 0.9 liter with a turbo and start-stop technology.
It has an amazing 85 horsepower and performs better than existing 1.2 liter engines.
This car has a top speed of 108 miles per hour and you get out of one gallon of gasoline 57 miles.
Obviously this Fiat engine is more friendly to our environment than any bigger engine.
Another anti-complexity tool we can choose for is a new mobile phone.
Called the John’sPhone.
It is made as simple as possible.
Like being simlock-free.
You can put in any sim card you like.
Prepaid, national and international cards, etc
Because it is Quadband the John’sPhone can be used anywhere in the world.
The phone has only one ringtone and three choices for volume.
On the back of this phone is a holder for a notebook and a pen on which to write by hand names and phone numbers.
There is no screen on the John’sPhone but on the top you can see phone numbers you call or receive.
Because the John’sPhone is so simple it hardly uses any energy.
It has a standby time of three weeks.
There is though a high/low battery indicator.
There is the option to have maximum ten numbers stored in the memory of the John’sPhone.
This super simple phone costs € 69,95 - $ 89 but when it becomes a success and mass production results, price will drop seriously.
Ok, let’s make a call then with a John’sPhone from a Fiat 500.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To learn more about the John’sPhone, click on:
http://www.johnsphones.com/
To learn more about the Fiat 500, click on:
http://danmoldovan.blogspot.com/2010/07/all-new-fiat-twinair-85-hp-two-cylinder.html
.
Do you remember an airplane built by McDonnel Douglas called the DC 10 ?
A medium to long range passenger airplane with three engines that could carry up to 380 passengers.
The first one was built in the late 1960’s, the last one in the early 1980’s and although the design of the DC 10 is 50 years old some of these airplanes are still in use as cargo planes.
One day in the past a pilot was met.
He was flying the DC 10 for more than 10 years.
This pilot was asked if it was not boring to fly the same airplane for so many years.
This, he explained, was a completely wrong presumption.
It was not boring at all to fly the DC 10.
Because, the pilot explained, on every flight he discovered something new about this airplane.
Wow!
Even after 10 years and countless hours still discovering new things of an airplane!
Pretty amazing!
It brought up the question if then anybody in the world knows literally everything of this complex machine.
Or is it a man made machine so complex that nobody knows everything about it?
That for each aspect of the DC 10 a specialist knows everything but that no specialist knows everything of all aspects?
If a machine can be made so complex, one may wonder who is the master and who is the tool.
If there is a problem and the aspect-specialist is not available, it is the machine that is in control.
But most of all we may wonder how much a pilot actually knows about the workings of his or her plane.
Is it 60 % or 20 % or 80 %?
This is part of the evolution of mankind.
Human beings used to make tools that were simple, helpful and easy to fix.
Machines with a limited amount of aspects.
Most people could understand the workings and therefore when there was a problem, repairing was easy.
We don’t need to go to the Stone Age to find examples of this fact.
Let’s take cars.
The French produced a car called the Citroen 2CV.
Built from 1948 to 1990, it had a two cylinder air cooled engine of the most simple technology.
Therefore very few aspects to it.
If it broke down, it could be fixed with the tool box you have in your garage.
But in 2008, Citroen made a car called the C4 with a computer controlled gasoline engine of 1.6 liter and 16 valves.
Complex as hell: in case of a break down, no tool box from the garage was of any help.
More and more complexity means more and more dependency.
And guess what, we do this to ourselves.
.
Every fervent and loyal blog reader must consider himself or herself as very lucky.
Not to be near the pioneering photographer.
Because he is pissed off as never before.
The reason is this damned lottery.
A ticket was bought for the price of a meal including a beer in a simple restaurant.
€ 15 or $ 19.
Last night they published the winning numbers and our ticket with the number ED 027809 won nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
This by itself doesn’t produce piss.
That’s all in the game.
Buying a ticket in a lottery can make you win and can make you lose.
Nothing to cry about.
But all fervent and loyal blog readers are invited to study carefully the winning lottery numbers.
Something stinks there.
Something not right.
Maybe fraud?
The bold numbers are the winning numbers.
Over a hundred.
Winning from € 10 to € 10.600.000
Or $ 12.71 to $ 13,472,070
Do go along those numbers and when carefully done, you will notice something peculiar.
That only two numbers from the + 100 winning numbers have as a last second number a zero.
How can that be?
This lottery is an official Government controlled lottery.
Profit goes to the Minister of Finances.
The more money the Government makes with this lottery, € 143,2 miljoen ( $ 182 million ) in 2009,
the more they can spend on social welfare and tanks for the army.
So, there is a motivation not to have ticket number ED 027809 win.
€ 15 was spent for a lottery.
But in fact it was for buying a bullet.
Uitslag 1056ste Staatsloterij 10 september 2010
Jackpot
€ 10.600.000,00
• KA 068352
•
•
• Hoofdprijs
€ 1.000.000,00
• FH 097832
Eindcijfer(s)
Heel Staatslot
1/5 Staatslot
101
€ 30,00
€ 6,00
094201
€ 5.000,00
€ 1.000,00
AG 020021
€ 25.000,00
€ 5.000,00
Andere series 020021
€ 100,00
€ 20,00
331
€ 30,00
€ 6,00
7531
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
5241
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
741
€ 30,00
€ 6,00
DA 083061
€ 100.000,00
€ 20.000,00
Andere series 083061
€ 450,00
€ 90,00
031371
€ 1.000,00
€ 200,00
GN 036371
€ 100.000,00
€ 20.000,00
Andere series 036371
€ 450,00
€ 90,00
2
€ 10,00
€ 2,00
02 *
€ 25,00
€ 5,00
AK 030702 *
€ 25.025,00
€ 5.005,00
Andere series 030702 *
€ 125,00
€ 25,00
Hoofdprijs FH 097832 *
€ 1.000.010,00
€ 200.002,00
Andere series 097832 *
€ 2.510,00
€ 502,00
Jackpot KA 068352 *
€ 10.600.010,00
€ 2.120.002,00
062552 *
€ 10.010,00
€ 2.002,00
8362 *
€ 260,00
€ 52,00
009462 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
067072 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
7682 *
€ 260,00
€ 52,00
GP 080092 *
€ 100.010,00
€ 20.002,00
Andere series 080092 *
€ 460,00
€ 92,00
9203
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
8603
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
5713
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
EF 053023
€ 25.000,00
€ 5.000,00
Andere series 053023
€ 100,00
€ 20,00
020123
€ 1.000,00
€ 200,00
923
€ 30,00
€ 6,00
1843
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
353
€ 30,00
€ 6,00
010263
€ 1.000,00
€ 200,00
2183
€ 100,00
€ 20,00
HD 029383
€ 100.000,00
€ 20.000,00
Andere series 029383
€ 450,00
€ 90,00
9883
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
493
€ 30,00
€ 6,00
4
€ 10,00
€ 2,00
24 *
€ 25,00
€ 5,00
924 *
€ 55,00
€ 11,00
015634 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
734 *
€ 40,00
€ 8,00
067344 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
072974 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
012974 *
€ 5.010,00
€ 1.002,00
5
€ 10,00
€ 2,00
085115 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
081745 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
4465 *
€ 260,00
€ 52,00
195 *
€ 40,00
€ 8,00
041295 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
018995 *
€ 1.010,00
€ 202,00
6
€ 7,50
€ 1,50
0026 *
€ 257,50
€ 51,50
076026 *
€ 1.007,50
€ 201,50
36 *
€ 22,50
€ 4,50
336 *
€ 52,50
€ 10,50
9836 *
€ 272,50
€ 54,50
2466 *
€ 257,50
€ 51,50
029376 *
€ 10.007,50
€ 2.001,50
86 *
€ 22,50
€ 4,50
FQ 097786 *
€ 25.022,50
€ 5.004,50
Andere series 097786 *
€ 122,50
€ 24,50
042317
€ 1.000,00
€ 200,00
021627
€ 10.000,00
€ 2.000,00
BR 012727
€ 25.000,00
€ 5.000,00
Andere series 012727
€ 100,00
€ 20,00
CO 060447
€ 25.000,00
€ 5.000,00
Andere series 060447
€ 100,00
€ 20,00
DL 045367
€ 25.000,00
€ 5.000,00
Andere series 045367
€ 100,00
€ 20,00
BF 006967
€ 25.000,00
€ 5.000,00
Andere series 006967
€ 100,00
€ 20,00
5087
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
033387
€ 1.000,00
€ 200,00
KD 056887
€ 100.000,00
€ 20.000,00
Andere series 056887
€ 450,00
€ 90,00
012997
€ 5.000,00
€ 1.000,00
8
€ 7,50
€ 1,50
016108 *
€ 1.007,50
€ 201,50
FU 097248 *
€ 100.007,50
€ 20.001,50
Andere series 097248 *
€ 457,50
€ 91,50
034448 *
€ 1.007,50
€ 201,50
061258 *
€ 1.007,50
€ 201,50
68 *
€ 22,50
€ 4,50
094768 *
€ 1.022,50
€ 204,50
5378 *
€ 107,50
€ 21,50
2778 *
€ 257,50
€ 51,50
6978 *
€ 257,50
€ 51,50
057098 *
€ 1.007,50
€ 201,50
070598 *
€ 1.007,50
€ 201,50
19
€ 15,00
€ 3,00
095319 *
€ 1.015,00
€ 203,00
9629
€ 100,00
€ 20,00
149
€ 30,00
€ 6,00
3149 *
€ 280,00
€ 56,00
005849
€ 1.000,00
€ 200,00
FW 057459
€ 100.000,00
€ 20.000,00
Andere series 057459
€ 450,00
€ 90,00
9869
€ 250,00
€ 50,00
080689
€ 1.000,00
€ 200,00
0
€ 5,00
€ 1,00
700 *
€ 35,00
€ 7,00
GZ 072110 *
€ 100.005,00
€ 20.001,00
Andere series 072110 *
€ 455,00
€ 91,00
099510 *
€ 1.005,00
€ 201,00
4720 *
€ 255,00
€ 51,00
0920 *
€ 255,00
€ 51,00
073930 *
€ 1.005,00
€ 201,00
EY 019140 *
€ 100.005,00
€ 20.001,00
Andere series 019140 *
€ 455,00
€ 91,00
3740 *
€ 255,00
€ 51,00
950 *
€ 35,00
€ 7,00
HK 070070 *
€ 25.005,00
€ 5.001,00
Andere series 070070 *
€ 105,00
€ 21,00
076180 *
€ 1.005,00
€ 201,00
KE 073680 *
€ 25.005,00
€ 5.001,00
Andere series 073680 *
€ 105,00
€ 21,00
053780 *
€ 1.005,00
€ 201,00
033290 *
€ 1.005,00
€ 201,00
LB 076790 *
€ 100.005,00
€ 20.001,00
Andere series 076790 *
€ 455,00
€ 91,00
Jackpot
KA 068352
€ 10.600.000,00
.
Now living in Amsterdam, the Netherlands in an apartment equipped with a large flat panel TV, sometimes programs are watched.
Inevitably this means seeing commercials as well.
During those moments the ceiling and the decorations on the wall of the living room are studied and the sound of the TV is switched off just not to hear and see these annoying clips for spending money.
Nevertheless sometimes commercials were seen in spite of the preventing actions and one of those commercials were about the National Lottery.
As if it was a pressing matter and of the most ultimate urgency it was informed that in two days it would be known who was the winner of the € 7.000.000 ( $ 8.800.000 ) jackpot and the many other prizes.
And then a curious thing happened when having finished drinking a café latte in the coffee shop around the corner last morning.
The course was not to go back to the temporary home.
Somehow and miraculously the steps went to the cigar shop on the other side of the street.
Where they have tickets for the National Lottery.
And the lady was asked to sell one of them.
She said: you have any preference for a number?
Because these tickets come out of an electronic machine.
A preference for a number of a ticket for the National Lottery?
Hell, yes!
The winning number of course.
This she could not guarantee.
So now it is “ ED 027809 “.
And what this wins we will know later today.
This behavior of seeing a commercial on TV and then without any spine or character visit a cigar shop to buy a € 15 ( $ 19 ) lottery ticket, is highly condemnable.
And not fitting at all in regular way of thinking and the policy for life permanently applied.
You could say it was a moment of having left the own body and mind and having become one of the characters in George Orwell’s book 1984.
Dumb, low consciousness, materialistic, no awareness, no spirituality, easy to influence and manipulate.
Is the time lived in Europe this Summer too long?
But there is another side to the story and the auto flagellation.
What if today this lottery ticket is awarded with a prize of let’s say € 5.000.000 ?
That is $ 6.343.000 bucks, mister.
Will anybody claim it was foolish to visit the cigar shop?
What happens next will always remain a mystery.
If the lottery ticket doesn’t bring in a penny, shame and guilt will prevent to report this publicly.
If the contrary happens, the lottery ticket wins a couple of millions, better not to make this public because of the all flies that will come to the honey.
.
