It was all about me

Tomorrow is my first day (well evening actually) back to school I’m going to the exact same university I left about 5 years ago. 5 freaking years. (*runs to the mirror to check for wrinkles*) SO.OLD. I’m thrilled to go back to school, but I’m also scared. And confused about those contradictory feeling I’m having about it. Just looking at all the books just gives me the shivers.

The first time I went there university wasn’t about learning. As crazy that may sound. Sure, I went there to learn. And it helped me (although I didn’t finish it) to get me where I am now. I met Mr. Sweety there and the learning experience got me the cool job I have now.

Going to university in 1996, was really for me. Getting to know me. Accepting things. Growing up. And I didn’t even realize it.

I had just turned 17 when university started. At 17 I wasn’t exactly confident of ME, my looks or my intelligence. But what normal teenager would be??

Up until the age of 16 I had thought as myself as an ugly ducky. Silly? Maybe. I was terribly insecure about me. And my body. How contradictory this may sound: the insecurity became even worse when I suddenly (that’s what it felt like at least) turned from a ugly ducky to a cutie. I don’t know what happened, if it was my boobage that suddenly had grown to unknown seizes or that I actually got cuter. At the age of 16 suddenly boys noticed me. Men even. It confused the shit out of me and it got “worse” when I went to university. The question: “Do you want to be my college friend or just have some Sweety in tha sack?” came to my mind very, very often.

Of course I also enjoyed the attention. What girl doesn’t want to hear she’s cute? And it didn’t control my life through the 4 years of university. I got relatively (LOL) good grates, enjoyed the many, many, many parties. The drinks, alcohol, rock & roll.

But I kept on being insecure. And kept on losing weight.

And after two years, it was either the scale that hit less than 42 kilos (92 pounds?) or the ride to the hospital that made me realize I needed to change my lifestyle. Like immediately. I found help. It took some time, but it helped. I started eating again. Munching on apples. Grapefruit. Later bread. Salads. (And who’d believe it, now I’m addicted to sweets & pastries).

And when I felt strong again, I left school because I didn’t feel a connection with the stuff I was learning and I decided to work for a while. That “little while” turned into a few years. And from the girl I once was, I grew into a woman. And now I have finally found what she would like her bachelor degree in: Communication.

And yes, I will go back to the same university. To the memories. The memories that hurt and the memories that make me realize I’m now strong. I’m intelligent. And cute. But most important, to the place I met Mr. Sweety. Because if anything, HE was the one who let me believe in me. And up to this day I wonder why he was willing to start a relationship with me although he had seen me in the absolute lowest point of my life. Less than 92 pounds, ill, scared and sad.

But on a lighter note, I got myself some cute school supplies!

Caption Time!

Poor Mr. Sweety

Pictures finally!

And than finally the promised pictures of our trip to Brussels and Bruges (Belgium), with Zandria.

Click to enlarge (giggles)!

Two famous bloggers.. don't you dare say otherwise

The peeing guy & main market square. We had searched for ages to find the peeing guy. He's a national Belgium celebrity. You'll have to see the main market square in real life. There is not a picture that could represent it's amazing beauty.

Belgium beer & old buildings

Open air music festival and random cute couple

Random cute couple and famous Brussels Atomium

For more pictures be sure to check Zandria's photopage.

Yteews explains

Shamelessly stolen from Jen.

Your name spelled backwards.
Yteews

Where were your parents born?
My mom was born in The Netherlands, my dad was born in South Africa

What is the last thing you downloaded onto your computer?
TV series Amish in the City & The Assitant

What’s your favorite restaurant?
Right now I would say Ludieck restaurant in The Hague

Last time you swam in a pool?
Uhm june 2003 I guess. I know, I should go on holiday SOON!

Have you ever been in a school play?
Yes, Phantom of the opera

How many kids do you want?
Three

Type of music you dislike most?
Heavy metal & hard rock

Are you registered to vote?
Yes

Do you have cable?
Yes

Have you ever ridden on a moped?
Yes, a very cute purple one. It was nice untill my ex boyfriend messed with the brakes.

Ever prank call anybody?
Yes , who hasn’t?

Ever get a parking ticket?
No (but I don’t have my drivers license either)

Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving?
I’m a bit afraid of hights. I don’t think I could get myself to jump into “nowhere”. I did go on a catapult attraction once. It was the scariest thing ever.

Farthest place you ever traveled.
The United States

Do you have a garden?
No, we have a tiny balcony. I would love to have a garden.

What’s your favorite comic strip?
Uhm, that will have to be Garfield. Also I like a Dutch comic strip called “Jan Jans en de kinderen”.

Do you really know all the words to your national anthem?
No I don’t. I know like the first few sentences.

Bath or Shower, morning or night?
Shower in the morning, bath at night. That is, if we had a bath.

Best movie you’ve seen in the past month?
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Favorite pizza topping?
Cheese & jalopeno

Chips or popcorn?
Chips

What color lipstick do you usually wear?
I don’t wear lipstick often but I’ll sometimes use lipgloss.

Have you ever smoked peanut shells?
Peanut shells?? Can you smoke that? Why would I? We have marihuana shops on like every street corner.

Have you ever been in a beauty pageant?
No

Orange Juice or apple?
Orange juice, definitely, every morning! Freshly squeezed!

Who was the last person you went out to dinner with and where did you dine?
Zandria & Mr. Sweety in Brussels, in a Chi Chi restaurant.

Favorite type chocolate bar?
Cadbury Chrunchie mmmm mmmm mmmm

When was the last time you voted at the polls?
2002, that year we had to vote twice, because the government had fallen.

Last time you ate a homegrown tomato?
You mean they don’t grow in grocery stores?

Have you ever won a trophy?
No

Are you a good cook?
Yes! I like to think so.

Do you know how to pump your own gas?
I think so? I’m not sure what the question means.

Ever order an article from an infomercial?
Nope

Sprite or 7-up?
Is there a difference?

Have you ever had to wear a uniform to work?
Nope (thank god!)

Last thing you bought at a pharmacy?
Birth control pills & medicine for my migraines

Ever throw up in public?
Nope (thank god again!)

Would you prefer being a millionaire or find true love?
I already found my true love, so I’ll take the cash and spend it with him!

Do you believe in love at first sight?
Yes

Ever call a 1-900 number?
We don’t have 1-900 here

Can ex’s be friends?
Not my ex’s. Not all anyway.

Who was the last person you visited in a hospital?
Mr. Sweety’s grandma

Did you have a lot of hair when you were a baby?
Ask my mom!

What message is on your answering machine?
We don’t have an answering machine.

What’s your all time favorite Saturday Night Live Character?
We don’t get that show here :(

What was the name of your first pet?
Snoopy, a cute blue eyed white bunny. I had her for over ten years.

What is in your purse?
A LOT of junk

Favorite thing to do before bedtime?
Drinking hot tea & hugging with Mr. Sweety

What is one thing you are grateful for today?
Life

Not again!

I sighed and put one foot out of the car. I looked over the full, but yet quiet, parking place and thought to myself “at least we don’t have many witnesses”. I debated if we really didn’t have any other option. At least an option that would be as quick. For a while I stared at the groceries in the back. It was getting hot in the car and I thought of all the food that needed to be put in the fridge. Milk, butter, cheese. That frozen pizza was probably not as frozen anymore. Mmm, I could totally eat a pizza now. At least we didn’t buy any chocolates, that would have been a waste.Although melted chocolate does taste fine. mmmm

This had to be done. I’m a though girl. What do I care about people seeing me do this? This was our only option. And while I climbed out of the car, I looked at Mr. Sweety and said:

“I’m SO gonna get my drivers license. So next time, you push and I start the car.”

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Kissy kissy Italian & French Ass in Belgium

Or : Mr. Sweety, if you don’t buy me those chocolates now, I’m gonna go back to the Italian guy!

We enjoyed the weekend in historic Brussels and Bruges, with Zandria. Living in Europe we’re very used to seeing historic towns & buildings. Buildings from the medieval times, ruins from the Roman Empire, the Greeks, etc. But visiting Brussels was amazing and the main market square just had me in awe every time we walked on there.
Besides old buildings you’ll find people of many different nationalities in Brussels; tourists, business people and waiters…

The lovable – kissy kissy - Italian Waiter
Sunday night we were wondering through the many small streets of Brussels. Including a cute street with no less than a gazillion restaurants. Outside these restaurants there were waiters trying to persuade you to eat at their restaurant. Since we brought our video camera Mr. Sweety went back to make some video shots from the beginning of the street. I hadn’t blinked once after he turned around and there was this Italian guy holding my hands. Uhmmmm.

Cute Italian Waiter: One kissy please
Me (thinking): too cute too slap
Cute Italian Waiter: Awww givva me a kissy
Me: Uhmmm.. nooooooo I can’t

I try locate FreezeM, who was totally involved with the camera and had no idea what was going on.

Me (pointing): My boyfriend is standing over there, he’ll be very upset!

The waiter looked at Mr. Sweety, and, like I, noticed that Mr. Sweety was still too concentrated on the cam.

Cute Italian Waiter: Givva me one kissy please
Me (laughing): Noooooooooooo

When Mr. Sweety came back the waiter turned to the cute blond on my right. Yes I mean Zandria. And he persuaded her to kiss him on the cheek. And who can blame the girl, I mean that Italian guy was a cutie!

The *cough* asshole* cough* French Waiter
Belgium people speak French or Dutch (with an accent). It’s an ongoing language battle: Dutch Belgium people refuse to speak French and visa versa. But some use this language thing just to be an ass.

We’re sitting on a terrace (overlooking the magnificent market square) and a waiter comes to take our order.

Mr. Sweety (in Dutch): Do you speak Dutch? Can I order in Dutch?
Waiter (in Dutch): Yes of course. What can I bring you?
Mr. Sweety (in Dutch): We would like 1 beer and the small carafe of whine.
Mr. Sweety (in Dutch): Is that small carafe enough for two persons?
Waiter (in Dutch): Yes it is.

After some minutes the waiter comes back with the beer and a huge carafe. When we asked him to return that one for the smaller one:

Waiter (with the thickest French accent you’ve ever heard in your entire life): Pardooooonnn?
Waiter: *enter a lot of French words here*

And we realize his knowledge of the Dutch language had suddenly escaped his evil French brain.

.. expect pictures of our Belgium adventure soon!

Caption Time!

Go ahead, make me smile :)

Zan has arrived, safe and sound

This week we’ll skip the traditional Monday’s caption time!
(I KNOW stop crying now already).

Because? FreezeM and I went to pick up Zandria from the airport this morning!

Waiting...

Is this her?

She hasn't passed us right?

Nope... not her

Was she even ON the plane???

Yayy! Zandria arrived safe and sound this morning on Schiphol airport.

We hugged (awwww). She is SO nice. She is even more pretty in real life!

We had some coffee at the airport. After that we brought her to the apartment building at the campus (I’ll let her blog about the fact that we lost the way getting there ;)). When we brought her suitcases up (and took a peek into her room ;) she met a few other foreign students who are staying on the same floor in the apartment building. I’m sure they’ll be checking Amsterdam out together soon.

After that, we went to the supermarket (which is also on her campus). There she experienced true Dutch customer service. Which isn’t a good thing, but it was fun. We were at the counter to order some sandwiches and as we were making up our mind, this guy can’t seem to wait with making the sandwiches. In Dutch he said “Hurry up, I’m on my coffee break!”. It was 2 PM! What do you mean COFFEE break??

We enjoyed our lunch in the sun and left her to do some unpacking. I can’t wait to hang out with her and rediscover The Netherlands through her eyes.

Sweety vs. D.A.

I’m sorry I haven’t been around here this week. I’ve been having a stressed time at work. I’ve been promoted 1.5 years ago, but never actually got the money involved with this new job. For about 6 months I thought that was okay; I felt the need to prove I could do it before asking for money. But now, I KNOW I can do it. I even got a bonus for part of the job in December.

Still I believe I should not get a one time bonus (though I’m grateful that I got it!). I’m doing this job every day, I should get a raise.
So that’s what I’ve been asking for about a year now. Unfortunately my insane incompetent freak manager (did I mention he NEVER had a management training) doesn’t seem to want to help me and refused to talk to me about it this week TWICE.

It’s upsetting me, because it’s SO unfair.
I know there are other ways to get what I deserve. I already got some good advice from the head of human resource department of another government organisation. The employee rights are pretty much equal in government organisations here. And yes, we concluded I'm right in this.
But really, do I want to play it hard? Do I want to kick his incompetent ass?

So that’s what I’ve been up to this week. I have not let it influence my job, instead I worked even harder. But it’s exhausting and when I get home I don’t feel like writing on my blog.

I promise to be around here & all your lovely blogs more as of now!

Caption Time!

I apologize in advance:

Yes it's our bunny Joshua with his former girlfriend Lisa. Can't believe I'm actually posting this! But I'm SO runnig out of pictures!

You must be 18 years or older to write a caption.

Happy bday toooooooooo...

Today I turned 26! And Moby (our cat) turned 2!

We celebrated it yesterday evening with a lovely dinner at Ludieck restaurant (ludiek = ludicrous). It was awesome. Excellent food and service! They even offered us a steak from a massaged & manicured cow. Poor Bella.

A couple of weeks ago I had a HUGE Jessica Simpson blond moment:

Me: I’m already 26! *sigh*
Mr. Sweety: No you’re not.
Me: I am too!
Mr. Sweety: You’re 25.
Me: I am?
Mr. Sweety: Do the math, you were born in 1978.
Me: (counting)
Me: Yayyyyyyy! I get to stay 26 this year!

So today I’ve done the impossible, I’ve not aged for a year. It must be magic. Whatever it is, I’ll put it in a bottle and it’s going to make me millions. I’m taking orders now!

Birthday girl!

The ultimate language challenge

About a month ago Mr. Sweety applied for a job at an international organisation. He had two interviews, and waited… and waited… waited… And this week… they called to say they want him to come work for them!! Yayyyy! I’m so excited because he really WANTS this job. He´ll start in September! Woohoo!

One of the reasons for wanting to work at an international company is that it can be a key to move & work in the US one day. It won’t in any way harm our chances and will be of help when it ever comes to the point that we actually apply for jobs in the US. Besides that, it will be an awesome experience.

So, of course, the working language at this company is English.
I know our English is not bad. But watching non subtitled movies, chatting and blogging in English is quite different from speaking it the entire day. At work.
And Mr. Sweety wants to do good at this job…. So he came up with the idea to, as of now, speak English to each other. For a month.
I’m always in the mood for something new & exciting (Yay! Give the kid a new toy!! It’s called ENGLISH WOOHOOO!) so I said yes.

We started today and it just feels SO silly! And suddenly I realize I don’t know all the words and find myself pointing to the objects I can’t seem to name. “I mean THAT THING OVER THERE honey! “. So far we had these conversations:

just before dinner

Mr. Sweety: What are we having for dinner tonight?
Me (pointing to the meet in the fridge): Meatloaf and..
Mr. Sweety: That’s NOT meatloaf, that’s beef.
Me: Uhm… I was thinking BEEF.. and.. uhm..uhm put it in the oven with that… that green with white vegetable thing over there.. in Dutch it’s called flower cabbage you know what I mean.
Mr. Sweety: It's too hot to cook
Me: Nachos?
Mr. Sweety: Nachos.

later this evening...

Me: A meteorite doesn’t dance in the sky like that
Mr. Sweety: Nee, maar het was een close-up he, misschien trilde zijn hand heel erg.
Me: *cough cough* English

in a few minutes...

Me: I'm going to do the dishes. Do you want to help me?
Mr.Sweety: Dishes? What are dishes? I don't understand.

For both of us it will be an exciting month. And I just know he’ll do fine, correction: he’ll do GREAT!

Fashion Disasters Championship

Contestants? Me, … me and me in one day…

The 3rd price goes to:
Mount Sandals
I should have known that wearing sandals I haven’t worn in a longggg time are not meant for longggg walks. My right foot is accompanied by a blister the size of Mount Everest. Wait… do I see a mountain climber there?? Mind the pedicure please! Thanks!

And the 2nd price goes to:
The legsThe skirt
For the second time this year I wore a skirt. From the looks on the mans faces (well, the woman’s faces too, but that was a whole other look, believe me. To them I say: *cough cough* diet) when I walked into the cafeteria I realized it was a tad too short.
Eat on, eat on.

And the winner of the 1st price this year is: *drums ruffle*
The Nipples
SWEETY SAID NIPPLES!
The comment “I have a braw that prevents them from doing that” made me realize I choose the wrong top to wear to work. “It’s called a TShirt bra”. Okay okay, enough talk about BRAS already! I’m working ya know!
Since the climate in our building is cool (I think they finally found the plug to turn on the AC).. I was not only with me, but with my 2 saluting friends (I SWEAR they were saluting!). I was like the 3 freakin’ Musketeers. Here we are, all three! Thank god I did not have any appointments today (hence the skirt).

So that was me, limping, in a too short skirt (for work anyway) with 2 musketeers silently screaming “Hello HERE WE ARE! Be PROUD! Stand up straight!”.

So.em.bar.ras.sing. But I finally WON something, 1st, 2nd and 3rd price. Woohoo!

Caption Time!

Victor from Publius & Co was so sweet to offer Calle’s picture to appear on Monday’s Caption time. I must admit it was at the right time, because, to be honest, I’m running out of home made caption pictures. Thank you Victor & Calle the ‘fat’ rat!

And if you (yes you!) have any home made pics that would be utterly cool on this caption time thingie, please feel free to email them to me *puts on puppy eyes*! I’ll pimp your side in return!