Explore. Dream. Discover.

Be back soon... I hope

2012-01-29T13:23:00.000+01:00

I realize I've been more than a little absent lately. That's because I've been going through some things and because I have been busy moving. After almost two months, I've pretty much settled into my new place and I'm getting used to the new city I'm living in (although I still have a whole lot of exploring to do!). But still, somehow, I haven't felt really inspired to write... about anything. I'm hoping you don't mind too much! A little while ago I did change the look of the blog. I quite like it. And today I updated some of the pages. But other than that, inspiration hasn't come to me yet. Let's just hope I'll be back soon(ish).

The world's most typical person

2011-11-15T10:30:00.001+01:00

Must see - Life in a Day

2011-11-13T13:24:00.000+01:00

"What happens when you send a request out to the world to chronicle, via video, a single day on Earth? You get 80.000 submissions and 4.500 hours of footage from 192 countries."

This is a pretty extraordinary documentary about ordinary people, their lives on the 24th of July 2010, and their answers to 3 simple questions:

What do you have in your pocket or purse?

What do you love?

What are you afraid of?

I believe...

2011-11-01T17:19:00.000+01:00

"I believe in pink.

I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner.

I believe in kissing, kissing a lot.

I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong.

I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls.

I believe that tomorrow is another day and

I believe in miracles."

- Audrey Hepburn -

De tijd

2011-08-23T08:43:00.000+02:00

"Waarom moeten hele uren

twee halve uren duren?

Waarom begint er na een dag

als je een nacht lang wacht,

een nieuwe dag?

Wat is er nou voor aardigheid

aan het tellen van de tijd?

Eén uur.

Halftwee.

Maandag.

Dinsdag.

Ik doe niet langer mee.

Maart.

April.

Zomer.

Winter.

Ik doe wat ik wil.

Mijn tijd raakt nooit meer op.

Ik zet gewoon de wijzers stop.

Etenstijd?

Bedtijd?

Tijd om op te staan?

Ik trek de stekker

uit de wekker.

Ik hoor geen klok meer slaan.

Ik maak een einde aan de strijd.

Ik ga zwemmen in de tijd."

- Arend van Dam, 1953 -

Who? What? Why?

2011-07-06T11:56:00.000+02:00

I've been working on the pages Who?, What? and Why? a little bit and now there is actually something to read on them. Go check it out if you want.

Just me

2011-07-05T19:26:00.000+02:00

Before I officially start this post, I feel I should warn you. With a few exceptions, I don't really like to get too personal on this blog. That's just not my style. But in the post I'm about to write (although I must admit I'm still debating whether I should actually write it, and if so, whether I really want to publish it) I will be getting a little bit more personal. So, if that's not really your style either, if that doesn't interest you one tiny bit, you should probably run away... right... about... now!

Not too long ago, I finally joined Facebook. I had actively and persistantly resisted it before (you see, even though I have not one, but two blogs, I am in fact not very much - or not at all - into technology), but when a good friend of mine who is perhaps even more technologically challenged than I am, ventured onto Facebook, I couldn't very well stay behind. So, like the millions and millions of people who went before me, I now am the proud owner of my very own Facebook-page. Once I found some people who were actually willing to publicly admit to being my friends, Facebook started to throw all of these people my way, suggesting that I might know them. Some of them I know or knew, most of them I have never heard of. Of the ones I actually know or have known, most I like and if for some reason we haven't stayed in touch, I would very much like to see what they're up to these days. However, there are also a few I don't really care for and I would have been fine to have never been reminded of them ever again (thank you very much, Facebook!). These few people (really, just one or two, I don't want you to think there are all these people out there that I don't like) I met in high school. Which kind of brought me back and got me thinking about my time in school (thanks again, Facebook!). I guess I was a pretty weird kid in high school. I was really shy. I never quite knew what to say. I was awkward and quirky. I wore cheap and often second-hand clothes, with which I desperately tried to create my own style (I failed miserably, if you must know). In short, I wasn't cool at all. Definitely not one of the popular kids. Don't get me wrong, I had some amazingly awesome friends! Still do! But there were also a few people who just didn't really seem to like me very much. Fortunately, I didn't get teased too often or too badly. But I did get made fun of every once in a while and especially when you're already a shy kid, that's not exactly doing you much good. So... I became even more shy and I desperately wished to be different. Cooler, prettier, less shy, more outspoken. Just anything but myself. And although I absolutely, more than anything in the world, wanted and tried to be different, I never really knew how. It actually took me the longest time (ok, this makes me sound kind of old, it might have just felt like a long time) to figure out why I wasn't very succesful at being different. The answer is actually quite obvious. Because you just can't be different. You just can't be what you're not (I know, this is starting to sound a bit too philosofical, but bear with me). This doesn't mean you will always be the same. You change, you grow, you learn, you evolve. And you should. But I believe this only concerns the nuances of who you are. The person that you are, your personality, your soul, that doesn't change. Nor should it. You just simply are who you are and you don't have to do anything about it. Now, realising that is one thing, accepting it is another. Accepting who you are, weird quirks and all, isn't the easiest thing to do (especially after having been teased for who you are and after trying to be different for so long). But personally, I like to think I've come a long way! Now I like that I'm a little different and that I have some weird little quirks. I like it when my boyfriend calls me his little weirdo (which he means in the nicest possible way, I assure you). Being normal is just boring anyway! I like it that I'm just me now. That doesn't mean that I'm never insecure anymore, but what I guess I'm trying to say is (I guess, because half the time I don't even really know myself what I'm trying to say): Just be yourself! Because there isn't anybody else you're going to be. And if you're a little bit different? Even better! And if people don't like who you are? That's their problem, not yours!

Oops, did I get way too personal here? Too much information? Well, I warned you. You should have run when you had the chance!

Fair Politician of the Year 2010-2011

2011-06-23T11:11:00.000+02:00

(Source: Vlaardingen Groenlinks)

Last week I came across an interesting interview in the newspaper that I wanted to share with you (so yes, I'm a little bit late, but better late than never... right?). It's an inverview with Fair Politician of the Year 2010-2011, Arjan El Fassed. He is a member of the political party GroenLinks, which just so happens to be my favorite party. He was named Fair Politician of the Year because of his devotian to a more fair developmental aid policy. I think he has some very great ideas about developmental aid, which he talks about in his interview. So, here is part of that interview (since I'm Dutch, my newspaper is also Dutch, therefore the interview is in Dutch, so... the rest of this post is going to be in Dutch as well):

"Van alle 150 Tweede Kamerleden bent u het meest fair. Vindt u dat zelf ook?
El Fassed (lacht): 'Ik ben het in ieder geval het snelst, want ik zit pas een jaar in de Kamer. Dan inspireert zo'n prijs je wel. En het is beter dan aan het eind van je loopbaan iets winnen. Dit is een aanmoediging om nog meer aan te koersen op wat ik wil bereiken.'

En dat is?
'Meer samenhang in het beleid. De Kamer heeft onlangs mijn motie aangenomen waarin de regering wordt gevraagd te berekenen in hoeverre het Nederlands beleid negatieve gevolgen heeft voor Nederlandse ontwikkelingssamenwerking. Dat is een grote en belangrijke stap in het verbeteren van de effectiviteit van de ontwikkelingssamenwerking. Vaak wordt er over hulp gezegd: we besteden zoveel geld, hoe kan land X nou nog steeds zo arm zijn? Volgens mij komt dat doordat we niet naar het totaalplaatje kijken, het handelsbeleid én het klimaatbeleid én het belastingbeleid. Om een voorbeeld te geven: de winst die internationale bedrijven maken in een ontwikkelingsland wordt niet daar ter plekke belast, maar weggesluisd via allerlei constructies. Naar Nederland, naar andere landen. Dan kunnen wij ze wel helpen met het innen van belasting, maar op deze manier heeft zo'n land daar niet zoveel aan. En het gaat om enorme bedragen.'

Enorme bedragen die andere landen dus mislopen. Niet echt een stimulans om dat te veranderen.
'Uiteindelijk kun je minder geld aan ontwikkelingssamenwerking besteden als je dit soort dingen goed regelt. Je zou denken dat het kabinet daar ook wel oren naar heeft. Maar het denken over ontwikkelingssamenwerking gaat nog teveel vanuit nationaal belang. Terwijl je ook kunt zeggen: wat goed is voor Afrika is ook goed voor Nederland. Als mensen zelfredzaam zijn, kun je zaken met ze doen in plaats van ontwikkelingshulp bieden.'

Het kabinet wil het aantal partnerlanden verminderen en in minder sectoren hulp bieden ter bevordering van de effectiviteit. Goed idee?
'Ja, maar als je thema's kiest, kies dan thema's waar je goed in bent. Dus zet in op landbouw, water en laat onderwijs los. En dan niet 'toedeledokie!', want dat is kapitaalvernietiging. Zorg dat andere landen het overnemen, Engeland bijvoorbeeld. Wij willen op termijn minder Nederland en meer Europa. Laten we de krachten bundelen en afspreken welk land welk thema voor zijn rekening neemt, zodat we niet allemaal op hetzelfde bezuinigen. Dat is niet alleen beter voor ons, maar ook voor het ontvangende land. Stel dat Zambia van tien verschillende landen geld krijgt, dan moet het land tien keer rapporteren, met een beetje pech op verschillende wijze en in verschillende talen. Door de relatie te beperken tot één land, kun je de geldstromen beter stroomlijnen, heb je meer zicht op de uitgaven en beperk je de kans op corruptie.'

[...]

Kamerleden ontzien hun eigen portefeuille het liefst helemaal als het bezuinigingen betreft. Waar zou het kabinet volgens u toch winst kunnen boeken?
'Als GroenLinkser maak ik me natuurlijk zorgen om het klimaat. Wanneer we noodhulp moeten inzetten voor klimaatgerelateerde problemen als overstromingen en droogte, zijn we verkeerd bezig. Noodhulp wordt gezien als doekje voor het bloeden en zelfs de PVV is er voorstander van, maar het is het duurste dat er is. Als je 1 dollar investeert in het verminderen van risico's van (natuur)rampen in ontwikkelingslanden, dan bespaar je ongeveer de 7 dollar die je anders kwijt bent aan noodhulp, mocht het daadwerkelijk tot zo'n ramp komen. Een ander voorbeeld: het kost 1 dollar om een kind te voeden in een ontwikkelingsland, terwijl het maar liefst 80 dollar kost om een stervend kind te redden als het al bijna te laat is. Tijdens een hongersnood bij voorbeeld. Die aardbeving in Haïti was niet te voorkomen, maar we hebben het wel over een jarenlang verwaarloosd land. het had nogal wat uitgemaakt als deze ramp een ontwikkeld land had getroffen. Toch is het in de Tweede Kamer veel moeilijker om de handen op elkaar te krijgen voor preventie. Maar bij zo'n aardbeving, dan pakken mensen gelijk hun portemonnee.' "
(Bron: Trouw, donderdag 16 juni 2011)

Frustratingly frustrating

2011-06-11T10:03:00.001+02:00

You know what the absolutely most frustrating thing is about not finding a job? It is not just that you're not being able to find a job, it's that you're not even being invited to job-interviews. That's just so utterly frustrating, to me at least. I don't know how many rejections I've gotten by now (it's too depressing to keep counting them), but to nearly every letter of application I've written I've received a response that went something like this (but then in Dutch mostly):

Dear Sylke,

Thank you for showing interest in our company. We have received an overwhelming amount of applications, so we had to make a selection. Unfortunately, you will take no further part in the application process.

Kind regards,

......................

Of course I understand that a selection has to be made. If you truly get so many reactions, you simply cannot invite every single person. I get that. I also understand that there are many people out there who are much more qualified than I am. So it's no mystery to me why this keeps happening. That doesn't make it any less frustrating though! If you do get invited to an interview and you still don't get the job, that would suck too, but at least you had a fighting change. Now, you don't even have that! Now, you don't even get to show them your sweet personality, smart brain and all of your potential. It's so absolutely, completely, utterly, frustratingly frustrating!

Ok, that's probably enough ranting about the frustations of job hunting for now.

Must read - The Dressmaker of Khair Khana

2011-06-10T10:00:00.000+02:00

As I talked about before, I'd like to create returning 'must see' and 'must read' features on this blog. I'm currently reading a very interesting book (it's interesting to me at least, I can imagine that people who have not studied (international) law and are absolutely not fascinated by it at all, will probably find it a bit boring), which I'd like to tell you about. However, I have this problem... I'm the world's slowest reader! So it's probably going to take me awhile before I've finished it. Instead, I figured I'd talk about a book that I came across and would love to read: 'The Dressmaker of Khair Khana' by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon. It sounds completely inspiring and truly fascinating to me. Here is a description:

"The life Kamila Sidiqi had known changed overnight when the Taliban seized control of the city of Kabul. After receiving a teaching degree during the civil war — a rare achievement for any Afghan woman — Kamila was subsequently banned from school and confined to her home. When her father and brother were forced to flee the city, Kamila became the sole breadwinner for her five siblings. Armed only with grit and determination, she picked up a needle and thread and created a thriving business of her own.

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana tells the incredible true story of this unlikely entrepreneur who mobilized her community under the Taliban. Former ABC News reporter Gayle Tzemach Lemmon spent years on the ground reporting Kamila's story, and the result is an unusually intimate and unsanitized look at the daily lives of women in Afghanistan. These women are not victims; they are the glue that holds families together; they are the backbone and the heart of their nation. Afghanistan's future remains uncertain as debates over withdrawal timelines dominate the news.

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana moves beyond the headlines to transport you to an Afghanistan you have never seen before. This is a story of war, but it is also a story of sisterhood and resilience in the face of despair. Kamila Sidiqi's journey will inspire you, but it will also change the way you think about one of the most important political and humanitarian issues of our time."
(Source: Amazon.com)

And here are parts of an interview with the writer:

"Greg Mortenson [interviewer]: In The Dressmaker of Khair Khana, Kamila and her sisters sew a collection of wedding dresses overnight for a wedding party they later find out is connected to the Taliban. How did writing this book affect your view of the Taliban period?

Gayle Tzemach Lemmon [writer]: That scene in the book captures precisely the extraordinary complexity of the period. Reporting on the Taliban period I quickly learned there were many different views of what those years were like, depending on who you were, what you did, and where you lived. A lot of women I knew, including, of course, Kamila, told me stories about local Talibs who knew of their work and even helped them to keep it going. And they said that many of the Taliban in their neighborhood were men they had known for years who simply needed to support their families.

What I kept coming back to—and what moved me deeply during so many conversations with young women , some of them tearful—was the raw loss they felt at having been deprived of five and a half years of education. And yet even amid all that despair they found ways to come together to build a community for the sake of their families. We are so used to seeing women as victims of war to be pitied rather than survivors of war to be respected. I really hope The Dressmaker of Khair Khana does its small part to change that.

[...]

Mortenson: You’ve spent a lot of time on the ground in Afghanistan. What is it like to travel there as a young woman?

Lemmon: I love going to Afghanistan, though the trip from California is nearly 40 hours. It is a beautiful country with incredibly generous people who will give you anything they have even if it is all they have. (And I highly recommend the food!)

Being a young woman actually made my work easier. I could meet women of all ages and spend time with them at their homes hearing their stories and sharing my own. This is a world many foreign men will never have access to, for cultural reasons. I also could meet Afghan men because, as a foreign woman, you sort of fit a third category—not male, but not exactly female, either. I worked hard to build trust with those women and men who entrusted me with their stories—I tried to learn Dari and to draw as little attention to my ‘foreign-ness’ as possible: I often was the frumpiest woman I saw all day in my uniform of black pants, black socks, black shoes, black t-shirt, and a dark jacket and head scarf. I think those I wrote about respected the fact that I kept coming back to Afghanistan.

Mortenson: You've worked and studied in conflict and post-conflict regions such as Rwanda, Bosnia and Afghanistan. Women are rarely involved in the high level decision making that affects conflict negotiations or even consulted about their own creative ideas for resolution. How can we help and empower women to play a much larger role in resolving conflicts?

Lemmon: This is a question I think about all the time. We are used to women pulling families through war, but having no say in the peace which follows. This must change for the world to be a safer, more stable place.

A great example has been set by the women of Liberia, who insisted their voices be heeded when it came time for UN negotiations to end their nation’s civil war. (There is a great film about their push to be heard called “Pray the Devil Back to Hell.”) Afghan women, too, are speaking up to make sure that no peace negotiations happen without their real and substantive representation. Each one of us can help advance their cause and this effort by insisting that our own elected officials don’t take part in any talks in which women don’t take part. Holding our own leaders accountable is a great place to start."
(Source: Amazon.com)

Loving day

2011-06-09T14:32:00.000+02:00

I'm supposed to be working today, instead I'm stuck at home not feeling very well. Having slept untill about 1 in the afternoon already, I'm pretty much all out of sleep right now. But what is one left to do when one isn't feeling up to much else? Browse around the world wide web for random stuff. Look what loveliness I came across:

"This Sunday, June 12, is Loving Day; and celebrations and commemorative events will take place around the nation. Loving Day is the 44th Anniversary of the 1967 unanimous Supreme Court decision in Loving v. Virginia, striking down anti-miscegenation laws.

Richard Perry Loving (felicitously named) married Mildred Delores Jeter in June of 1958. Since he was white and she was black, and interracial marriage was prohibited in their home state of Virginia, they traveled to Washington, DC to get married. A few weeks after returning home, they were arrested, pled guilty, and were sentenced to one year in jail. The sentence was suspended for 25 years on condition that the couple leave the state. Appeals within Virginia (while the couple lived elsewhere) upheld their conviction as non-discriminatory because both the white and black spouses were convicted and sentenced equally. Nine years later, the unanimous Loving decision finally put an end to anti-miscegenation laws, and allowed the Lovings to return to their home state.

In 2007, a year before she died, Mildred Loving prepared a statement in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the Loving decision. It concluded:

Surrounded as I am now by wonderful children and grandchildren, not a day goes by that I don't think of Richard and our love, our right to marry, and how much it meant to me to have that freedom to marry the person precious to me, even if others thought he was the "wrong kind of person" for me to marry. I believe all Americans, no matter their race, no matter their sex, no matter their sexual orientation, should have that same freedom to marry. Government has no business imposing some people's religious beliefs over others. Especially if it denies people's civil rights.

I am still not a political person, but I am proud that Richard's and my name is on a court case that can help reinforce the love, the commitment, the fairness, and the family that so many people, black or white, young or old, gay or straight seek in life. I support the freedom to marry for all. That's what Loving, and loving, are all about."
(Source: Psychology Today)

Some small changes

2011-06-07T12:10:00.000+02:00

I've been making some minor, tiny changes to the blog and I figured I'd tell you about them. A little while ago I changed the pages that you see above; I added 'Who?', 'What?' and 'Why?'. On the 'Who?'-page I will be telling a little bit about myself. And I really do mean just a little bit, I'm not going to bore you with my life story starting at the age of 5 (I'm actually going to be started at the age of 7. No I'm not... or am I?). The 'What?'-page will be about what this blog is about and what kind of things I like to write about. And the 'Why?'-page will be a little short story about why I started this blog in the first place. So, I have it all figured out. Now I'll just have to find the right words, which, so far, haven't come to me. Hopefully... soon...

I've also been fooling around with the labels a little bit. I used to give my blogposts only one of two labels; 'English' or 'Nederlands' ('Dutch'). When I started this blog I figured I was mostly going to be writing in English, but with the occasional Dutch thrown in. However, it's been a while since I've written in Dutch, so I'm thinking it's time to change up these labels a little bit. (That doesn't mean I can never write something in Dutch on this blog ever again, I might, who knows. And you can absolutely still write your comments in Dutch if you want, I am still Dutch after all, I can still understand what you're talking about.) You can now see the new labels on the left under the heading 'What am I talking about?'. I'm also thinking of turning a few of these subjects into (somewhat) regularly returning features. 'Must see' for instance. I like watching movies and every once in a while I stumble upon a great one that I feel everyone should see. So I'm thinking why not tell you about them and make that a returning blogpost-subject (like the post from yesterday). The same with 'must read'. Although unfortunately I'm an extremely slow reader (I always envy people who can finish a book in just a few nights), so I'm not quite sure yet if that's going to work out.

So people (and with 'people' I mean the few of you who have somehow happened to have found your way to my little blog over here - are you sure you didn't take a wrong turn somehwere?), what do you think? Does this all sound like something you would like?

Must see - Made in Dagenham

2011-06-06T22:43:00.000+02:00

A little while ago I saw this fabulous little movie called 'Made in Dagenham'. It was a completely random thing. We (my dad and I were spending the day in Amsterdam) felt like maybe going to see a movie, but we hadn't the faintest idea of what was playing in the theatres, so we just went to have a look. We saw a little flyer for this movie and it appealed to us, so we figured... why not? And it turned out to be great!

"1968. It's a man's world. But not for long..."

The movie is based on a true story that took place in the small town of Dagenham in England. Sally Hawkins plays leading lady Rita, a woman who works, like many women in Dagenham, in the local Ford factory. They are machinists. They work in a hot basement-type room with a leaking roof to sew together the interiors for the cars. They don't get paid a lot of money and they are being told that's because their work is classified as unskilled labour. The women disagree, so they fight for better pay. They even go on strike for a day, eventhough women never went on strike in those days. Men did... a lot in England. But never women. However, it didn't make any difference. It turned out Ford just didn't want to pay the women better, not because of the so-called unskilled labour they were performing, but simply because they were women. They claimed they just couldn't afford to pay the women as much as the men. So with a lot of courage, intelligence and humour the women of Ford started fighting, not just for better pay, but for equal pay. And it turned out Rita was the perfect woman to lead them. Eventually, 850 female workers went on strike. The local Ford factory even had to close its doors because of it. It wasn't until they were promised equal pay (well, almost equal, 98 % I believe it was, which still isn't fair if you ask me, but it was an amazing victory nonetheless) that they went back to work.

I always love a good movie about strong women (or just people in general, I don't necessarily have anything against men) fighting for something they believe in even though it goes against what is considered to be normal at that time. It almost makes me want to have been born earlier so I could have fought along with them. (Even though I believe we, and by 'we' I mean us women, shouldn't be done fighting, since we still don't get completely equal pay. But that's probably a whole other story for another time.)

This was a truely awesome true story!

Sorry!

2011-06-05T18:38:00.000+02:00

Oops, I did it again! I've been such a bad blogger these past few weeks, I'm so sorry! I've kind of been lacking the time and inspiration to write lately, but I have a couple of things in mind now that I want to write about, so... tomorrow... I'll be back. I promise!

Personality

2011-05-15T12:45:00.001+02:00

Oops, it's been a while since I've written something for my cute little blog over here. I guess I've been a bit too busy with my other blog. I'm sorry, sweet blog of mine, can you forgive me? (I like to think it will say yes, but then again, it's probably not a very good sign of my mental health when I hear my blog speaking to me)

I like sunday. I think it's my favorite day of the week (but I guess that's true for most people). I like to do as little useful things on sunday as I can and stay in my pyjama's way too long. Today I found this fun personality quiz (found it via How About Orange) to waste my time with. I don't think the outcome was all that accurate, but I still like it. Here is what it said about me:

My personality

Mood: Go Getter
You're an adventurous soul (who sits behind her computer on a sunday afternoon in her pink bathrobe taking a personality quiz, very adventurous that soul of mine!) with a bit of a romantic outlook. You have a very creative spirit and love to search out new experiences that will fuel your imagination. Your choice of drink (I choose water, because I'm boring and that happens to be what I drink most) shows that you care about your health and make sure you're putting the right stuff in (does chocolate count as 'the right stuff' too?). When it comes to holidays you see them as the perfect chance to further yourself and to learn more about the world around you. You like to be immersed in a completely different world and would be really bored just sitting on a beach (ok, that's true, I like walking on the beach, but just sitting on it? No, thank you).

Fun: Thriller
As for the home you have an expressive personality (I do? I did not know that, it might explain the bright orange wall in my bedroom though). You like your surroundings to be simple and comfortable (does anyone really like their surroundings to be uncomfortable?) - with a really romantic feel. You love physical activity (I do??? That's news to me!) - you've got serious wanderlust. Keeping a clear head and healthy body makes you ready for whatever life throws at you. For kicks you like to indulge and treat yourself to whatever you like. After all you only live once!

Habits: New Wave Puritan
When it comes to art you tend to have a traditional approach (I picked out a painting of Van Gogh... what can I say, I'm a sucker for a crazy guy who cuts of his own ear, I did not realise that made me traditional). You are passionate about history (if only someone told me that in highschool, I might not have failed it) and true classics. Truly great art stands the test of time. As for music for you it's all about self expression. Nothing beats it to take you away from everyday reality. You love being a little bit naughty (yep, that's me, breaking rules left and right). Being good all the time is too boring - life should be about enjoyment. When you think of freedom - you think of living for the here and now. You're pretty (ah, thank you!) fearless and take any opportunity open to push yourself to the limit.

Social: Fun
You can never get enough attention or affection. You love to be touched. You love to touch others... And what turns you off: Vanity in a world gone mad. You favor a natural look. Fantastic not plastic. You have real passion for life and you don't like to take things too seriously (such as this quiz). For you friendship is all about enjoying yourself (no, I prefer to always have a bad time when I'm with friends) and seeing the funny side of life.

A walk on the beach

2011-04-25T11:17:00.000+02:00

Yesterday, on my birthday, we (my boyfriend and I) went to the beach. It was a beautiful day! We spent the afternoon walking on the beach and eating icecream (well, we just had one icecream, which we didn't spent the whole afternoon eating, but it still was some really good icecream). In the meantime I even got to work on my 26 for 26-wishlist, since one of my wishes was to get outside more (nr. 14) - I've got sunburn (and a seashell) to proof it!

It's my birthday!

2011-04-24T09:44:00.000+02:00

Over the past couple of days I've already gotten some great presents, including a gift certificate to go skydiving! Two of my best friends have collected money from friends and family to be able to give this to me. How awesome!

And this morning I woke up to a decorated house... my boyfriend is so sweet!

My birthday also means the start of my self-imposed 26 for 26-challenge. Bring it on!

26 for 26 - The final 4

2011-04-19T10:31:00.001+02:00

Miraculously, I've managed to dream up the final 4 things I want to add to my 26 for 26-wishlist:

23. Keep blogging.

I know, it's probably a little bit like cheating to put something on my list that I'm already doing and just say that I want to keep doing it. But I don't care. It's my list and if I want to cheat a little, then I just do. I've put this on the list, because I imagine that once I find myself a real full-time job it might get a little harder to continue blogging, but I really like it, so I want to keep doing it.

24. Try yoga.

I don't know why, but I've always been a little bit fascinated by yoga. So I want to try it, at least once, to see what it's all about.

25. Take more pictures.

I like taking pictures. I like having pictures... to frame, to put in an album or just to have on my computer and to look at every once in a while. Unfortunately, most of the time I forget to bring my camera with me and I end up seeing all of these beautiful things I want to take a picture of, but can't. So I'm going try to remember to bring that camera with me.

26. Lose a little bit of weight.

And here it is... my final wish!

I thought long and hard about whether I wanted to put this one on my list. For quite some time now, I've been wanting to lose some weight, but every time I make it my goal (like a new year's resolution or something) and get really strict with myself, I fail miserably and feel even worse. But for some reason, I've managed to lose a little weight somewhere in the last couple of months without really trying. Just by eating better, I guess. (I'm actually really excited about it, because my Body Mass Index indicated that I was very slightly overweight, but now I'm back within the normal-weight-range.) So I want to see if I can keep doing that - losing weight without trying too hard. I don't want to get too strict with myself (I need my chocolate!), but I'm just going to try to keep eating healthier and exercising a little bit more.

Another reason I wasn't sure I wanted to put this wish on my list, was because I didn't really wanted to let the whole world know about this. But what the hell... who reads this anyway!

So there you have it, my whole 26 for 26-wishlist! In the year that I'm 26 (from 24 April 2011 until 23 April 2012) I'm going to try to fulfil these 26 wishes. And if I don't fulfil them all (because I end up really not liking one of them, or because I simply don't have the money), then that's fine by me. I see it more as a list of fun new things I want to try and things to strive for, then I list of chores that I have to do.

Check out the 26 for 26-page for the complete list and for updates on how I'm doing.

Follow by email

2011-04-16T09:49:00.000+02:00

I've found a new gadget to put on the blog, 'follow by email'. You can find it on the right, below the blog archive. I must admit that I didn't really understand the finer details of it, but logic would suggest that you just submit your email-adress and then you can follow my blog by email, which appears to me would mean that you get an email everytime I post something new on the blog. So, if you're interested, sign up and let me know if it's working alright or not.

The story of stuff - summarized for your convenience

2011-04-14T16:59:00.002+02:00

Earlier today I posted a great little 20-minute movie called The Story of Stuff. But I've been informed by someone who knows a lot more about this than I do, my brilliant knows-all-about-computers-and-the-people-who-use-them boyfriend, that this video is too long for the attention span of the average internet-surfer. Therefore, I decided to reduce it to a small summary and highlight some of the mindblowing facts that are mentioned in it. I still recommend you go see it though, because it is just so fascinating (to me, at least).

Annie Leonard, who presents The Story of Stuff, spend 10 years traveling the world to research and track where our stuff comes from and where it goes.
In the past 3 decades, 1/3 of the earth's natural resources have been consumed.
80 % of the planet's original forests are gone.
The Amazon is losing 2.000 trees a minute.
During the production of stuff, chemicals are added to the resources that have been extracted from the earth (for example: wood). There are 100.000 synthetic chemicals. Only a few have been tested for the impact they have on us. None have been tested for the impact they have on us once they had a change to interact with eachother.
BFRs (brominated flame retardants) are neuro-toxins, which means they are toxic to the brain. These chemicals are used on all types of products, including matresses and pillows.
The food with the highest level of toxic contamination is human breastmilk.
1 % of all materials is still in use 6 months after the date of sale. The other 99 % is trashed (in the US).
Planned obsolescence - "designed for the dump": All kinds of stuff is designed to break after a while (not too quickly, so you don't loose faith in the product, but soon enough) so you buy more.
Perceived obsolescence: The way things look is changed all the time (clothing, shoes, computers etc.) so you keep buying new stuff, because you don't want to look old-fashioned.
National happiness (in the US) peeked in the 1950's and has been declining ever since. The 1950's was also the time that the consumption mania exploded.
Dioxin is the most toxic man-made chemical that exists. The number 1 source of this chemical is the incineration of garbage (thus, the most toxic chemical ever is being blown into the air for us to breath in).
For every garbage can that leaves our home, 70 garbage cans of waste was created to produce the stuff that ends up in that 1 garbage can.
A lot of stuff is too toxic to be recycled or just cannot be recycled (since it consist of too many different materials that cannot be separated).

PS: This afternoon, I found a blog called The Zero Waste Home of an American family that strives to create zero waste (by refusing, reducing, reusing and, as a final resort, recycling). Very fascinating!

The story of stuff

2011-04-14T09:08:00.000+02:00

Everyone should see this little film called 'The story of stuff'! I came across it on the website The Kind Life. It looks and sounds a bit like it was made for small children (and perhaps it was), but it is filled with a ton of mindblowing facts and insanely interesting information about where our stuff comes from, the highly consumeristic world that we live in and the effects that this modern way of living has on the environment and ourselves. Check it out... today! And start thinking of (small) ways that you can reduce, reuse and recycle your stuff.

26 for 26 - Nrs. 21 & 22

2011-04-13T12:01:00.000+02:00

I am having the hardest time coming up with the last 6 things to put on my 26 for 26-wishlist (my list of 26 things I want to do in the year that I am 26). Since I am turning 26 in less than two weeks, on the 24th, I will have to hurry. Luckily, my great friend Evelien came to the rescue and came up with two things to put on my list:

21. Set up my own webshop.

Evelien liked the giftbags that I made and that you can see on my other blog, A little creativity..., so much that she suggested I'd set up a webshop to sell things like that. And she wanted me to put it on my wishlist. So... I did. She was so incredibly enthusiastic about it, how could I say no? But I must admit, I'm not sure whether I will actually set up this webshop in the next year (since I am looking for another job, an official grown-up full-time job, which I'm hoping to find in the near future, I'm not entirely sure I will have time to make things and sell them once I find that job). I will give it some serious thought though and it does sound like a lot of fun, so... definitively... some day.

22. Make a proper photoalbum for my pictures of China.

I've posted a lot of pictures of my trip to China on my blog (see here and here), but I've been meaning to put together an actual photoalbum - you know, one that you can actually hold and flip through. I think I want to get one of those albums that you put together and order online, because they always look so beautiful and fancy. Now I just have to find the money to do this somewhere... maybe if I check our couch, my purses and pants-pockets?

Now, 4 more to go! I'm pondering about them and I may have some things in minds. I will let you know.

Plastic state of mind

2011-04-06T15:17:00.000+02:00

Check out this hilarious parody on the song Empire State of Mind - Plastic State of Mind - making a statement against the use of plastic bags and other plastic items.

Less = more

2011-04-03T14:53:00.007+02:00

Why I don't eat meat... a lot.

I guess my way of eating is not easily labeled. I'm not a vegetarian, because I eat, and don't have a problem with eating, fish. And I'm definitively not vegan, since I absolutely love (almost) all things dairy and cheese. But I don't eat a lot of meat. I've consiously made the decision to eat less meat after learning more about the modern meat industry and the effects that it has on the environment, ourselves and (perhaps most surprisingly to me) world hunger.

"Earth's 6,8 billion residents produce enough food to feed between 9 and 11 billion, yet 1 billion go hungry."
-- Joel Cohen, mathematical biologist - BigThink.com

So, we produce more than enough food to feed all the people on the planet, but there are still people starving. How can this be? This is, in part, because about 2/3 of the food (mostly grain) is being fed to animals in the meat industry. It takes 16 pounds of grain to produce only 1 pound of edible meat. How illogical!

"Meat consumption is an ineffecient use of grain - the grain is used more efficiently when consumed directly by humans. Continued growth in meat output is dependent on feeding grain to animals, creating competition for grain between affluent meat-eaters and the world's poor."
-- The Worldwatch Institute

Here in The Netherlands, about 60% of our grain is being fed to animals. Even worse, developing countries are also growing grain which is exported to Western countries where it is used to feed livestock. This is financially more benificial than using it to feed their own people (Vegetariërs.nl). Not only does the meat industry use a whole lot of grain, it also takes up huge amounts of other resources, such as water, land and energy.

"It takes more than 2,400 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of meat, while growing 1 pound of wheat only requires 25 gallons. You save more water by not eating a pound of meat than you do by not showering for six months! A totally vegan diet requires only 300 gallons of water per day, while a typical meat-eating diet requires more than 4,000 gallons of water per day."
-- PETA

A lot of land is needed to not only house the animals, but also to grow the grain that is used to feed them. This leads to deforestation, which in turn leads to other environmental problems (such as the extinction of species and an increase in the amount of CO2 in the air).

And energy... the meat industry is a gigantic consumer of lots and lots of energy. It takes a 100 times more energy to produce 1 kilogram of meat than it does to produce 1 kilogram of potatoes. - Vegetariërs.nl

Furthermore, the meat industry is a major contributor to global warming and pollution. Worldwide, 18% of greenhouse gases ('broeikasgassen') can be contributed to the production of meat. This is 5% more than that of all types of transportation - cars, trains, boots and planes - combined! - Vegetariërs.nl

The best known greenhouse gas is CO2, but the meat industry also exposes us to other greenhouse gases, most notably methaan (which is 21 times stronger than CO2!) due to the massive amounts of manure that the animals produce. - Vegetariërs.nl

"Rearing cattle produces more greenhouse gases than driving cars."
-- United Nations

So, the modern meat industry is clearly not all that good for the environment. But the eating of meat isn't really all that good for ourselves either. It has been scientifically proven that eating lots of meat is unhealthy and that vegetarians generally suffer less from heart- and cardiovascular diseases and usually have less problems with obesity and diabetes (Vegetariërs.nl and ChooseVeg.com). It has also recently been in the news that (Dutch) scientists have now been able to proof definitively that eating meat (meanly chicken) can make your body resistent against antibiotics. This has to do with the antibiotics that are given to the animals that is still in their meat once you eat is.

After learning all this, and more, I decided to eat less meat. A whole lot less. Which for me, wasn't really all that much of a sacrifice, because I wasn't the biggest fan of meat in the first place. I do eat meat occasionally when I feel like it, and because I'm not necessarily against the slaughter of animals, I don't feel guilty when I do. Therefore, I'm also not saying that everyone should become a vegetarian, but just eating a little bit less meat would make such a great difference. It would be better for the environment, for yourself and it could make a small difference in the fight against world hunger. This is definitely a case where less = more! By eating less meat (and still eating delicious meals) you give other people, who desperately need it, a chance to have more food.

Earth hour

2011-03-20T18:55:00.000+01:00

Turn of all your lights for one hour next Saturday, March 26th, at 20:30h!

Just do it! I mean, why not? Surround yourself with beautiful candles and get cozy, while making an environmental statement at the same time.

Check out the website and join the thousands of people who are already participating in Earth Hour!

The ramblings of a frustrated jobhunter

2011-03-14T18:53:00.001+01:00

Hello, my name is Sylke... and I'm a frustrated jobhunter.

I've graduated in August and ever since then (and a little bit before that time as well), I've been looking for a job. Preferably a job that relates in some way to the subject that I have studied (international law), but really I'm just looking for any job. Any job that can provide me with some kind of practical experience or from which I will be able to learn something... anything. Because my current job of delivering mail isn't really doing that, at all. So I don't think I'm asking for that much. Then why is nobody offering me a job? Or even inviting me to come for an interview?

Because for the legal positions that are in some way related to 'my field' I do not have enough experience. And for a lot of the other positions I am either too highly educated or do not have the right education.

First of all, how can I get some experience when nobody wants to hire me?

Secondly, how can I be too highly educated when I still have so much to learn?

I understand that an experienced candidate might be more desirable than a candidate like me, who needs more training which costs more time and money. But that doesn't mean that I don't come with my own wonderful set of benefits. I'm not necessarily more intelligent than most people, but I'm smart nonetheless. I'm a quick study, hard worker and eager to gain experience and learn new things. So I'm thinking I could be a great asset to many companies and organizations. But people like me, recently graduated and without a lot or any experience, still have a lot to learn even after having studied hard for several years. And employers don't want to spend the time and money to teach us what we need to learn. If they did, however, they might just gain an employee that they could mold into someone that fits perfectly within their company. Employers need to start seeing us not as burdens that will be time consuming and expensive, but as blank slates that they can train and teach to be the perfect employee.

Ok, I think that's enough of my by frustration induced incoherent ramblings for today.

26 for 26 - Nr. 20

2011-03-13T12:32:00.000+01:00

Here is another addition to my 26 for 26-wishlist:

20. Do at least one thing I have never done before.

At the moment I really cannot think of what this thing should be, but I do know I want to do something new and exciting. Just like when I went skydiving before turning 25. The only thing I can tell you is what it will definitely not be: bungee jumping, swimming with sharks or anything involving snakes, spiders or large fish (yes, I have a thing against fish).

International Women's Day

2011-03-08T09:00:00.014+01:00

This is for (some of) the women in my life, in celebration of International Women's Day:

My mom - The strongest woman I know! She is beautiful, smart, powerful and wonderful. If I have only inherited one tenth of her strength and wisdom, I'm a very happy woman.
Joyce and Evelien - My two oldest friends, who I consider to be more like the sisters I never had than 'just' friends. Thank you for all the amazing times together, I'm looking forward to many more (including skydiving together when we're old and grey!).
Myrthe - One of the most creative and smartest persons I know (who taught me that it is ok to wear mismatching socks).
Ilse - You were an amazing housemate and I'm so happy we were able to remain good friends (even though we don't always get to see eachother as often as we would like).
Mensje - I always enjoy our dinner and movies dates greatly!
Wendy - The best childhood friend a girl could wish for! And I don't think I have ever properly thanked you for introducing me to Erwin, so in case you happen to read this: Thank you so very much!
Lucie and Jeanine - The best mother- and sister-in-law anyone could ever hope to have.
Paula - Who makes my dad so happy, thank you!
My aunt Marianne - Who taught me (probably without realising it) that you should live your life to the fullest and enjoy every moment, because you never know how many moments you have left.
My aunt Rita - Who taught me (probably also unknowingly) that there is nothing wrong with being a little different.

Happy International Women's Day!

26 for 26 - Nr. 19

2011-03-03T12:49:00.000+01:00

Amazingly enough I thought of yet another wish that I want to add to my 26 for 26-wishlist (oh boy, how am I ever going to dream up 7 more, what have I done to myself!):

19. Take my time.

Like so many other people, I imagine, I am always in such a rush. And even on days when I am taking it slow (mostly on Sundays), it is still buzzing in my head with things that I need to do. It's pretty stressful, I tell you! So I want to try and take my time a little bit more, slow things down a bit (I am getting a year older after all).

26 for 26 - Nr. 18

2011-03-01T17:26:00.001+01:00

I've managed to think of yet another item to put on my 26 for 26-wishlist (now I only have to come up with 8 more!):

18. Keeping up-to-date.

I have studied International Law for nearly two years and since graduating several months ago I have been looking for a job where I can apply the knowledge I have gained during those years. However, in the mean time I want to keep my knowledge up-to-date. I don't want to already start forgetting the things I have learned. Also, I want to keep up with all, or at least some of, the new developments that continuely take place in the ever moving field of International Law. Watching Law & Order probably isn't going to do it, even though I could classify it as 'studying the workings of the American legal system', I don't think it's going to cut it. So I should probably subscribe to some sort of law journal or something.

26 for 26 - It's very own page

2011-03-01T12:50:00.001+01:00

I have created a new page dedicated to my 26 for 26-wishlist. You can find the complete list (so far), and my progress with it, on there. So be sure to check it out every once in a while!

Speaking of my progress... I've already worked on a few things from the list (and I'm not even 26 yet!):

3. Learn to speak French - Mon nom est Sylke (ok, that's about it, but I'm working on it!).

9. Fix up the house - I've redecorated the living room a little bit (I like it... a lot).

12. Read more - I'm about half way through 'The alchemist' by Paulo Coelho (so far, I like it).

26 for 26 - Nrs. 16 and 17

2011-02-26T18:41:00.001+01:00

I'm having an increasingly hard time to think of more things to put on my 26 for 26-wishlist, but here are two more:

16. Get green.

I recycle paper, plastic and glass. I turn off lights and heaters when I don't need them. I only eat meat occacionaly. I try, but don't always succeed, to limit my time under the shower. I don't drive a car (admittedly, I don't have a drivers license or own a car, but don't I still get credit for riding my bike?). What I'm trying to say is that I try to live a little bit of a green life. But I think I could do more. And I want to try!

17. Dance.

From a young age on, I took dancing lessons for many years. I loved to dance! I still do, but I don't do it that often any more. So I want to go out dancing more often, just because I like it and it's fun. Or otherwise I just might have to start dancing right here in my living room, I don't care that I will be serverely mocked by my boyfriend (alright, I do care a little, but it's not going to stop me!).

Volunteer work

2011-02-15T11:16:00.000+01:00

I haven't found a new job yet, but I did find me some volunteer work to keep busy with. I'm helping with the organisation of the 'collecteweek' for Simavi here in our small town. It looks like it is going to be a little bit more work than I thought it would be, but I think it will be worth it. It's a great cause!

26 for 26 - Nrs. 12, 13, 14 and 15

2011-02-14T18:10:00.000+01:00

Yet again, a few more items to put on my 26 for 26-wishlist:

12. Read more.

I have all these lonely unread books just sitting on my bookshelfs. I buy them, but I don't always get around to reading them. Once I get cozy on my couch with a cup of tea or glass of wine, I really enjoy reading a good book. But somehow I rarely seem to make it onto that couch with a book in my hands. I just need to make the time for it.

13. Get (even) more creative.

I like to get creative. Mostly, but not exclusively, by knitting scarves (yes, I am secretly a 83 year old woman with 37 cats who rarely gets out of her house). And although I absolutely believe a girl can never have too many scarves, I would like to learn other things as well. Photography perhaps? Or maybe painting?

14. Get outside more.

I am already outside a lot due to my current job (delivering mail), but I wouldn't exactly call that a whole lot of fun. Walking through a beautiful park/forrest or on the beach, on the other hand, is fun. I live nearby some great places to walk around in, including the beach, and I want to explore them more often.

15. Run.

I used to run for a while. I even got me some special shoes. I loved it. I wasn't very good at it, but I loved it nonetheless. So I want to start running again.

26 for 26 - Nrs. 8, 9, 10 and 11

2011-02-12T10:12:00.001+01:00

I've come up with a couple of new wishes to put on my 26 for 26-wishlist:

8. Learn how to use a sewing machine.

Yes, I know, quite a strange and perhaps boring wish to have, but I still want to put in on my list. At the moment I do a lot of things by hand that could so much more easily be done with a sewing machine. However, I've never been very handy with them (or any other type of machine for that matter). There is a good chance that if I just start using one now, I'm going to take of a finger, so I'm hoping my mom is willing to teach me a few things first.

9. Fix up the house.

I've been wanting to fix up the house a little bit for a while now. By that, I don't mean completely renovating it, but just make it a bit prettier here and there. Time to get to it!

10. Get my drivers license.

...if I have the money.

Since driving lessons don't come cheap, I'm going to have to make this wish dependent on me actually having the money to do this (which, at the moment, I do not). But if I am able to get together enough money, it is probably about time I get my drivers license (YES! I hear my boyfriend screaming. Well, not literally, but I can imagine he will when he reads this)

11. Get together with my friends more.

One of my oldest (no, she's not that old, I just know her a long time) friends suggested I put this on my wishlist. I don't see her and some of my other girlfriends nearly enough. That has to change!

Double jeopardy

2011-02-07T00:11:00.000+01:00

I've been completely into the old(er) episodes of Law & Order lately. I had always found the normal Law & Order series a little bit boring, I was more of a Law & Order: Criminal Intent kind of person. But now I am finding the legal (and moral) dilemma's of the series absolutely fascinating. The other day I say an episode that posed a particularly interesting (albeit perhaps somewhat theoretical) legal question. The episode started with a murdered woman being found in a park. The detectives discover that her social security number belongs to a woman who died ten years ago and that she has been living under a false name. They suspect her husband of killing her, but he blames his brother. It turns out that she was married to his brother first, but she had an affair with her brother-in-law (her current husband - are you still with me?). They ran away together, which resulted in her being 'missing'. Since her husband (her first husband) had been abusive, he was soon suspected of her 'murder' and was sentenced to jail. He was released after ten years, about a week before she was actually murdered. He now confesses to having murdered her (his brother's wife), now, not ten years ago. So, he already served his time in jail when he was wrongfully convicted, therefore he cannot be convicted again for killing the same women. Or so he claims.

Is he right?

You know, I really can't tell you. And believe me, I've thought about this! It really is a question whether this is a case of double jeopardy of not. Double jeopardy means that the same person cannot be convicted more than once for the same crime. You will find this rule in (probably) all national criminal laws, as well as in international law. In this ficticious case of ours, we're definitely dealing with 'the same person', but are we also talking about 'the same crime'? The victim is the same. The crime he is being charged with is the same (murder). Double jeopardy seems to apply. However, one could also argue that it is in fact not the same crime, since they took place ten years apart. Your instincts (or at least mine) tell you that the killer should be punished for what he did now. He should thus be prosecuted and sentenced. But in fact he already payed for his crime in advance, since he already spent ten years in jail. It really is confusing, isn't it?

You're probably wondering what the prosecutors of Law & Order decided to do. Did they prosecute him? No, they did not. I turned out he didn't do it after all. It was his brother (the murdered woman's current husband) and he was just trying to cover for him, thinking he wouldn't be prosecuted. Then why did I bother you with this incredibly long and confusing story, you are asking? Well, because I thought it was interesting and fascinating and, frankly, I don't really care if you think it's not! (but ofcourse I'm hoping you find it as fascinating as I do and will now be haunted be this utterly confusing legal dilemma as much as I am).

26 for 26 - Nr. 7

2011-02-05T10:19:00.000+01:00

And here is number 7 for my 26 for 26-wishlist:

7. Travel

Apart from my trip to China this past October (which, don't get me wrong, was amazing), I have not traveled at all the last few years. And I love to travel! So, in the year that I'm 26 I want to travel. By this I don't necesarrily mean that I want to go somewhere far away and for a long period of time (although that would also be nice!), I just want to go at least somewhere at least for a little while. A weekend to London or Paris. A few days in Rome. It's all welcome!

26 for 26 - Nrs. 4, 5 and 6

2011-02-04T10:17:00.004+01:00

Again, I've come up with a couple more wishes for my 26 for 26-list. But I must warn you, these ones are quite boring (yes, I am actually a pretty boring person... and proud of it!)

4. Complain less.

I've been complaining so much lately. About my current job. About not finding another job. And all kinds of other things. And although a girl has the right to complain every once and a while, a little less is probably not such a bad thing.

5. Read the newspaper more often.

We get a newspaper every day, but I hardly ever read it. I used to almost every morning and I want to start doing that again, because I would like to know what is going on in the world again.

6. Eat more veggies.

I know, this one is particularly boring, but I'm putting it on my list anyway. I eat pretty healthy most days: a lot of fruit, grains and I try to drink a lot of water (and oké, yes, I do eat quite a bit of chocolate too, but we're not talking about that right now). But somehow those vegetables always seem to get away from me, I don't nearly eat enough of them. I'm going to start trying though.

Only 20 more to go!

26 for 26 - Nrs. 2 and 3

2011-02-03T11:31:00.003+01:00

I've thought of a few more things to put on my 26 for 26-list:

2. Go skydiving.

(or whatever the English word is for jumping out of an airplane with a parachute)

I've done this once before in September 2009, but I've been dying to do it again ever since. It was so much fun! I cannot really explain what it feels like, it's like you're flying (except you're actually falling extremely fast down to the earth). It's incredible!

3. Learn to speak French.

Or at least start to learn how to speak it. I've been wanting to learn the language for a while now, so it's about time I start.

26 for 26

2011-02-02T11:19:00.001+01:00

In April I will be turning 26. It feels old, even though I realise it really isn't.

I am thinking of creating a list of 26 goals I want to achieve (or wishes I want to fulfil, however you want to call it) in my 26th year. It is probably wise to include even the smallest goals/wishes I might have, such as eating more veggies, because how else will I be able to think of 26 of them. And if they are all going to be big ones, I have a very busy year ahead of me and it will be more likely that I'm not going to be able to fulfil them all.

What would be on your wishlist? And do you have any suggestions for mine?

I already definitely know what my number 1 goal will be:

1. Find another job!

New blog!

2011-01-30T14:56:00.001+01:00

I've got a new blog! And I am not just talking about the totally renovated look of this blog (how do you like that, by the way?), I actually created a completely new blog. Why, do you ask? Because I am a little crazy, that's why. No, not really (well, I might be, but that is not why I started a second blog, I don't think so anyway). I started the other blog because sometimes I wanted to post certain things on this blog, but I didn't because they wouldn't really fit in with it's more serious style. So I figured why don't I just start a totally different blog for those things... and I did: It's called 'A little creativity...', and it's awesome!

Traveling through China

2011-01-16T14:44:00.001+01:00

Remember when I promised to write a little bit more about my travels through China? Think..... way back..... just after I had gotten home from my trip. Well, I finally got around to keeping that promise. Actually, I have been working on it for a while now, it turned out to be quite a time-consuming task considering the enormous amount of pictures we had taken combined with my at times excruciatingly slow computer. Given the fact that there are so many (beautiful, if I may say so myself) pictures I wanted to show you, I figured they deserve there very own page. So check out Traveling through China, right next to Home, About me and In search of a job!

2,100 political prisoners

2011-01-10T14:54:00.000+01:00

Human Rights Watch:

"Although Aung San Suu Kyi has finally been released, more than 2,100 political prisoners remain in jail in Burma. These prisoners include members of the political opposition, human rights defenders, labor activists, artists, journalists, internet bloggers, as well as Buddhist monks and nuns.

Now is the time to renew the call for Burma's government to release all political prisoners in Burma."

Please sign the online petition to help free the 2,100 political prisoners of Burma!

"Europa dumpt slechte voeding in Afrika"

2011-01-09T23:08:00.001+01:00

"Europa exporteert naar Afrika 'behoorlijk wat' voeding en chemische stoffen die voor Europeanen ongeschikt zijn. Dat stelt Herman Koëter, voormalig bestuurder van het EU-agentschap voor veilige voeding EFSA en van de OESO. 'DDT is een goed voorbeeld van een insectenbestrijdingsmiddel dat in Europa is verboden, maar vrolijk naar Afrika wordt geëxporteerd. Ook in de voeding zien we zaken die door herverpakking ineens niet langer 'over de houdbaarheidsdatum' zijn. Een partij vis met te veel kwik of dioxinen eindigt niet zelden in een ontwikkelingsland'."
(Trouw, maandag 5 juli 2010)

Freedom

2010-11-29T16:03:00.005+01:00

"Recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world." (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Preamble)

NASRIN SOTOUDEH

Nasrin Sotoudeh is an Iranian human rights lawyer and feminist activist. She has defended several high profile human rights campaigners and political activists, such as journalist Isa Saharkhiz and the leader of the banned Democratic Front of Iran, Heshmatollah Tabarzadi.

Since 4 September 2010 she is being held in Tehran's Evin Prison. She has only been allowed to make three phone calls and has not been allowed any visits from her family or her lawyer. Also, since her arrest, her husband and lawyer have been warned against speaking publicly about her situation.

"The precise reasons for her arrest are still unclear, but the summons listed "propaganda against the system" and "gathering and colluding with the aim of harming state security". These vaguely worded charges are among several articles in the Islamic Penal Code in Iran relating to "national security" which criminalize activities that are nothing more than the peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly." (source: website Human Rights Watch)

"Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought and expression. This right shall include freedom to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing, in print, in the form of art, or through any other medium of one's choice." (American Convention on Human Rights, Article 13(1))

AUNG SAN SUU KYI

"Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s best-known prisoner of conscience, has spent more than 15 of the past 21 years under house arrest. She was one of more than 2,200 political prisoners, including prisoners of conscience, currently being held in deplorable conditions for simply exercising their right to peaceful protest." (Source: website Amnesty International)

Aung San Suu Kyi has been released from house arrest this month. However, she should have never been under house arrest in the first place!

"The Nobel Peace laureate had been detained since 30 May 2003 after government-backed thugs attacked her motorcade in Depayin, killing an unknown number of people, and injuring scores. This was the third time she was held under house arrest, having previously been detained from 1989 to 1995, and from 2000 to 2002." (Source: website Amnesty International)

"Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each State." (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 13(1))

The more than 2,200 political prisoners of Myanmar include Min Ko Naing, U Gambira, Su Su Nway and U Khun Htun Oo:
- MIN KO NAING was arrested in August 2007, only three years after he had finished a 15 year prison sentence for his leading role in the mass pro-democracy demonstrations of 1988. In 2005 he co-founded "[...] the 88 Generation Students group, aiming to renew efforts to expand the political space in the country along with his old friends who took part in 1988’s uprising. Min Ko Naing was sentenced in November 2008, along with 22 other members of the 88 Generation, to 65 years in prison." (Source: website Amnesty International)

- U GAMBIRA, a Buddhist monk, founded the All Burma Monks Alliance. With the support of other monks, demonstrations that began as small protests against the fuel prices turned into nationwide calls for political reform and the release of political prisoners. "The authorities violently cracked down on the movement in late September 2007, and U Gambira went into hiding, but continued giving interviews calling for international support and expressing solidarity with protesters. He was finally tracked down and arrested in November 2007, and has so far been sentenced to a total of 63 years including hard labour." (Source: website Amnesty International)
- SU SU NWAY is the first person in Myanmar who has succesfully sued the government for subjecting her and her community to forced labour. "After imprisoning her for eight months in retaliation for her legal victory, the government freed her in 2006 under international pressure. On her release, she proclaimed that she was keeping her prison uniform, as she knew she would be soon in jail again due to her continued commitment to highlighting the government’s poor human rights record. She was again arrested in November 2007 after putting up an anti-government banner near a hotel where the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights was staying." (Source: website Amnesty International)
- U KHUN HTUN OO is a senior political leader of the Shan, the largest ethnic minority group of Myanmar. After his political party, the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, began to raise concerns about the government's constitutional reform plan, he was arrested and convicted for treason. In 2005, he and leaders of several political groups met for dinner to discuss their concerns. The leaders were all arrested a month later. "U Khun Htun Oo was sentenced in November 2005 to an unusually harsh 93 years prison with hard labour, despite his age and numerous health problems. He was convicted of high treason and “inciting disaffection towards the Government” among other charges, and is being held in harsh conditions in the most isolated, northern prison in Myanmar." (Source: website Amnesty International)

"Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers." (Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, Article 10(1))

"Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives." (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 21(1))

"Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and the freedom of association with others, including the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests." (Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, Article 11(1))

CHEN GUANGCHENG

Chen Guangcheng is a Chinese blind lawyer. In June 2005, he "[...] filed a class-action lawsuit accusing officials in Linyi, a city in Shandong province, of seeking to enforce restrictive population control laws by subjecting thousands of people to late-term forced abortions, compulsory sterilization, midnight raids and beatings. In August 2005, local officials imprisoned Chen and his immediate family in their home and shut off all outside communication. They were detained for seven months. On March 11, 2006, Yinan county police officers 'disappeared' Chen for three months. It was not until June 11, 2006, that officials acknowledged he had been formally detained in the Yinan County Detention Center." On 21 June 2006, Chen was formally arrested on charges of damaging property and assembling a crowd to disrupt traffic. In August 2006 he was found guilty of these charged and sentenced to four years and three months in prison. (Source: website Human Rights Watch)

Since his release earlier this year he has been kept under unofficial house arrest. He nor his family (he lives with his wife, their 5-year old daughter and his 76-year old mother) are allowed to leave their home, not even to buy food. (Source: website Amnesty International)

"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood." (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 1)

Mijn mutsjes voor India

2010-11-15T01:22:00.001+01:00

Brei voor India

2010-11-13T23:58:00.000+01:00

Brei een mutsje voor een baby in India!

Het goede doel Save the Children heeft een nieuwe actie: Brei voor India.

Wereldwijd sterft er elke 3 seconden een kindje jonger dan 5 jaar. Meestal als gevolg van ondervoeding of door (eenvoudig te genezen) ziektes als malaria, longontsteking en diarree. In India sterven ieder jaar 2 miljoen kinderen en pasgeboren baby's. Onderkoeling is in de winter vaak de oorzaak. Doordat we een groot deel van onze lichaamswarmte via ons hoofd verliezen, kan een muts de oplossing zijn tegen onderkoeling. Volgens de website van Save the Children zijn er al 2622 mutsjes voor India gebreid! Deze worden door verpleegkundigen uitgedeeld in mobiele klinieken, terwijl zij de ouders van voorlichting voorzien.

Het mooie is trouwens dat je wel leuke, vrolijke kleuren moet gebruiken voor je mutsje, want de kleuren wit en ecru worden in India geassocieerd met de rouw en ook zwart is niet erg gebruikelijk. Ik zal mijn breinaalden dus maar eens gaan afstoffen en kijken of ik een mooi mutsje kan breien (het ingewikkeldste waar ik me tot nu toe aan heb gewaagd is een sjaal!). Wil je ook een poging wagen? Klik hier om te zien hoe je mee kunt doen.

1933 (2)

2010-11-03T18:03:00.008+01:00

Finally, the moment you've all been waiting for has arrived: The sequel to 1933 (1) is here!

In 1933 (1) I published a piece from the newspaper in which Atti Noordhof explained why she is against governmental cooperation with Geert Wilders' PVV. She wonders whether this moment in time is a turning point much like the year 1933 was a major turning point in history, the year that Hitler became Reichskanselier. Erwin was so fascinated by this comparison that he offered to guestwrite a small piece for my blog about this subject. So, ladies and gentlemen, without any further ado... here is 1933 (2) by Erwin:

I started out writing a detailled comparison with lots of references, quotes and links, but then realised it's actually quite simple: A common saying is "History tends to repeat itself". I see it more like "the same mistake is often made several times".

In short, the rise of the nazi party was preceded by economic downturn, started with pointing fingers to blame a certain ethnic group, and ended with "Wir haven es nicht Gewüst" expressed by millions. Somewhere in the middle you had my grandparents, hiding people in a secret annex.

So there's this economic crisis going on right now and there's this guy with dyed hair pointing fingers. (Who also seems to create duplicates in other european countries.) And now I'm wondering if I ever have to pick up on the old family business again. Ethnic cleansing is not a thing of the past and "The West" may have been lucky to not have had to experience it since WWII, but that does not mean it will never happen again. I cannot predict the future, but I do wonder why I have been looking in our appartment lately for "spare room" to place some "visitors"....

Home

2010-10-31T09:56:00.000+01:00

I see that my last post on this blog is two months old already. Time flies when you're having fun (or working two jobs for a month and are then going on vacation). So I figured I should post a small update for my loyal readers (all two of them!).

I've just come home from a trip to China. Although I absolutely love traveling and plan to do a whole lot more of it in the future, I always love coming home too. Seeing and kissing my boyfriend again, sleeping in my own wonderful bed again, seeing my friends again, and being reunited with my computer again (with which I seem to have some sort of strange love-hate relationship). Anyway, about my trip to China... my mom and I traveled for 15 days from Shanghai to Beijing and visited many places along the way, such as Tongli, Yichang and Xian. We have seen so many amazing things, from a small country road in Yichang to the Great Wall in Beijing. It has kept us pretty busy, which was great, but also means that I now feel I need a vacation to unwind from being on vacation. Unfortunately work is calling (not literally, not yet anyway. In fact, I should probably call them!). In any case, I will be writing about my journey through China in more detail soon and I intent to post some beautiful pictures as well.

Also, I promised to give you an interesting story about the happenings in 1933 written by guestwriter Erwin who, as I think I have mentioned before, happens to be my stunningly hansom boyfriend. First he forgot to write the story (as tends to happen with many things) and then I kind of lacked the time to look at it and post it. But I promise you, it will be coming soon!

That's it for my small update, which I hope will satisfy my two beautiful loyal followers until I find the time to write some real posts again.

Graduation

2010-09-01T18:46:00.006+02:00

Last week (on the 26th of August 2010) I received my masters degree! At last! I may now call myself a Master of Laws, which is pretty weird and really exciting at the same time. Here are some pictures of that glorious day:

On our way to the ceremony
with my new hat on top of my head
(it was a gift from my mother,
she thought it was very funny).

With my two oldest friends, Joyce and Evelien.

Me and my lovely boyfriend, Erwin.

Actually getting my degree (so exciting!).

I am never letting it go... ever!

Signing my name in 'Het Zweetkamertje'.

After the ceremony
(and after getting soaking wet from the pooring rain),
we enjoyed a great lunch together.

1933 (1)

2010-08-16T16:43:00.002+02:00

Atti Noordhof, CDA-voorzitter Bloemendaal, legt uit waarom zij het Manifest heeft ondertekend:

"Als bevolkingsgroepen als gevaar worden gezien, moet je uitkijken.
Ik vind het schokkend dat het CDA zich wil laten gedogen door zo'n partij als de PVV. Er zal altijd een anti-buitenlanderbeweging zijn, daar ontkom je niet aan, maar dat betekent niet dat je niet de plicht hebt om als individueel partijlid op te staan en te zeggen dat je er niet achter staat. Misschien is het zo dat de geschiedenis zich niet herhaalt. Maar toch. Onwillekeurig vraag je je af: is dit zo'n keerpunt in de geschiedenis zoals het jaar 1933 volgens schrijvers als Sebastian Haffner en Dietrich Bonhoeffer was, het jaar waarin Hitler Rijkskanselier werd? Is dit zo'n keerpunt waarvan onze kinderen en kleinkinderen later vragen: 'Maar heb je het niet gezien? Heb je niet gezien dat groepen in de samenleving werden uitgesloten en tot de bron van het maatschappelijke kwaad werden verklaard? Waarom ben je lid gebleven van een partij die mede mogelijk heeft gemaakt dat wetten en regels werden aangenomen die het steeds moeilijker maakten voor die bevolkingsgroepen? Die het steeds gemakkelijker maakten om die groepen uit te sluiten, te demoniseren?' Hoe de toekomstige geschiedenis eruit ziet, weet ik niet. Maar één ding weet ik wel: als bevolkingsgroepen en hun religie als gevaar voor de samenleving worden gezien, moet je uitkijken. Daarom heb ik het Manifest ondertekend."
(Trouw, vrijdag 13 augustus 2010)

Wil je meer lezen over de gebeurtenissen van 1933? Wacht dan vol spanning op '1933 (2)', een stuk geschreven door gastschrijver (en bovendien briljante ICT-er, geniale geschiedeniskenner en -liefhebber, heerlijk vergeetachtige bijna afgestudeerde student, en niet te vergeten mijn bijna acht jaar lange lieve vriend) Erwin.

Internationale linkshandigendag

2010-08-13T11:46:00.001+02:00

Het is vandaag internationale linkshandigendag!

Ik heb helemaal nooit geweten dat er een speciale internationale dag voor 'my people' is, maar deze bestaat blijkbaar al sinds 1976. De dag werd toen bewust op vrijdag de 13e in het leven geroepen als knipoog naar de zogenaamde onhandigheid van linkshandigen (zou daar mijn extreme onhandigheid vandaan komen?).

Er staat vandaag een interview in de Trouw met de rechtshandige eigenaar van linkshandigenshop.nl, René Bosch. In 1999 richtte hij de eerste Nederlandse winkel voor linkshandige producten op omdat hij moeite had met het vinden van een speciaal linkshandig cadeautje voor zijn linkshandige vrouw. René legt uit hoe onhandig het kan zijn voor linkshandige mensen om rechtshandige producten te gebruiken: "Bij een gemiddelde portemonnee heeft iemand die links is de neiging de portemonnee op zijn kop te houden om het muntvakje links te krijgen." Ook scharen zijn lastig te gebruiken en het bedienen van elektrische machines kan zelfs gevaarlijk zijn. Zelf heb ik jarenlang moeite gehad met blikopeners (ik zette hem altijd verkeerd om op het blik) en nog gaat het meestal niet zo soepel als ik graag zou willen. Misschien wordt het dus tijd om een linkshandige variant aan te schaffen in de linkshandige winkel, waarvan ik trouwens nooit het bestaan heb geweten. De hele maand augustus krijg je op linkshandigenshop.nl een gratis linkshandige liniaal bij iedere bestelling. Deze liniaal is af te lezen van rechts naar links, omdat linkshandigen vaak in die richting lijnen trekken (inderdaad, ja, dat klopt!).

Human stupidity

2010-08-12T09:32:00.002+02:00

"Kat lag in marinade met peper in achterbak auto.
Buffalo - De politie van Buffalo deed bij het bekeuren van een automobilist die door rood was gereden een vreemde ontdekking. Vanuit de auto van de verkeersovertreder klonk een jammerlijk gemiauw. De agenten deden de klep open en zagen een kat liggen, badend in de olijfolie en overdekt met stukjes rode peper en paprika. De eigenaar van de auto zei dat hij zijn kat in de marinade had gelegd en later zou braden. Het is een humeurig beest, zei hij. De kat is naar een asiel gebracht, zijn 'baasje' is aangeklaagd voor dierenmishandeling."
(Trouw, donderdag 12 augustus 2010)

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."

--Albert Einstein

I am woman

2010-08-12T00:15:00.005+02:00

The newspaper today reported that being a woman is apparently an obstacle when you want to be elected prime-minister in Australia. Julia Gillard, current prime-minister of Australia (replacing Kevin Rudd a couple of months ago) might not be elected in upcoming elections because she is a unmarried childless woman. Many man, and almost as much woman, have a problem with her not being married and not having children. Several years ago, former prime-minister of the Labour Party, Bob Hawke, claimed that you can only become Australia’s prime-minister if you are a good bloke.

Personally I have always been quite sceptical about marriage, but I am starting to soften up and thinking about… maybe… someday… in the future… getting married myself (which, besides my boyfriend, should make one particular girlfriend of mine – you know who you are – pretty happy). While I was wrapping my mind around the whole maybe-someday-getting-married thing, I read Elizabeth Gilbert’s ‘Committed’, which is about a sceptic trying to make peace with marriage as she is being forced to marry by the US government (in a way). Of course I could relate to most of what the book discussed, obviously with the most glaring exception of the being forced to marry by the government part. As I am slowly, very slowly, trying to perhaps accept the institution of marriage, the following section of the book scared me the most and made me wonder (again) why any woman would want to marry anyone ever:

“To get anywhere close to unravelling this subject – women and marriage – we have to start with the cold, ugly fact that marriage does not benefit women as much as it benefits men. I did not invent this fact, and I don’t like saying it, but it’s a sad truth, backed up by study after study. By contrast, marriage as an institution has always been terrifically beneficial for men. If you are a man, say the actuarial charts, the smartest decision you can possibly make for yourself – assuming that you would like to lead a long, happy, healthy, prosperous existence – is to get married. Married men perform dazzlingly better in life than single men. Married men live longer than single men, married men accumulate more wealth than single men; married men excel at their careers above single men; married men are far less likely to die a violent death than single men; married men report themselves to be much happier than single men; and married men suffer less from alcoholism, drug addiction, and depression than do single men. ‘A system could not well have been devised more studiously hostile to human happiness than marriage,’ wrote Percy Bysshe Shelley in 1813, but he was dead wrong, or at least with regard to male human happiness. There doesn’t seem to be anything, statistically speaking, that a man does not gain by getting married. Dishearteningly, the reverse is not true. Modern married women do not fare better in life than their single counterparts. Married women in America do not live longer than single women; married women do not accumulate as much wealth as single women (you take a 7 percent pay cut, on average, just for getting hitched); married women do not thrive in their careers to the extent single women do; married women are significantly less healthy than single women; married women are more likely to suffer from depression than single women; and married women are more likely to die a violent death than single women – usually at the hands of a husband, which raises the grim reality that, statistically speaking, the most dangerous person in the average woman’s life is her own man. All this adds up to what puzzled sociologists call the 'Marriage Benefit Imbalance' – a tidy name for an almost freakishly doleful conclusion: that woman generally lose in the exchange of marriage vows, while men win big.” (pp. 166-167)

Yet, with all benefits single women enjoy that their married counterparts have to life without, they still cannot become prime-minister… apparently. Should Julia Gillard therefore get married and, according to the statistics, lead a miserable life so she can be elected prime-minister? Why should she, or any woman for that matter, have to make a choice like that? Why does it even matter whether she is married or not, and has children or not? Shouldn’t is be much much more important whether she is any good at her job or not?

It almost makes you want to be a man. I should emphasize the word ‘almost’ in that sentence because, although it may be much easier to be a man (besides apparently benefiting more from marriage and more often than not earning more money, there are moments when I would love to be able to pee while standing), I absolutely love being a woman and you couldn’t pay me enough to switch to the other sex.

I am woman, hear me roar!

Bio-industrie wint

2010-07-27T15:20:00.007+02:00

Als GroenLinks-stemmer vind ik het natuurlijk ontzettend jammer dat de Paars-plus-onderhandelingen zijn gestrand. Aangezien ik ook nog eens anti-Wilders ben, ben ik al helemaal ongelukkig nu er over een coalitie van PVV, VVD en CDA gesproken wordt. Mijn grootste probleem met Wilders’ PVV zijn de ideeën die het erop nahoudt over de islam en ik vrees dat een kabinet waarvan Wilders deel uitmaakt veel negatieve gevolgen voor Nederland, zowel nationaal als internationaal, zal hebben. De krant (Trouw) van gisteren wees me op één van de nadelige gevolgen van een rechts kabinet waar ik nog niet aan gedacht had met een artikel getiteld: ‘Bio-industrie wint verkiezingen. Een coalitie van CDA, VVD en PVV zal intensieve dierhouderij vrij spel geven.’

Ik heb onder andere op GroenLinks gestemd omdat de partij staat voor een beter milieu. Zelf ben ik sinds enkele maanden grotendeels vegetarisch (ik eet wel vis, maar bijna geen vlees) en ook probeer ik op andere manieren een enigszins milieubewust leven te leiden. Ik heb dan ook grote problemen met de bio-industrie, niet alleen vanwege diens vreselijke behandeling van dieren, maar ook vanwege de enorme belasting die het heeft op het milieu. Zo wordt maar liefst 18 procent van de uitstoot van broeikasgassen wereldwijd veroorzaakt door de veehouderij (dat is meer van de uitstoot van alle auto’s, vliegtuigen, schepen en treinen bij elkaar). Ook verbruikt de veehouderij ontzettend veel energie; zo is bijvoorbeeld voor de productie van 1 kilo kalfsvlees 100 keer zoveel energie nodig als voor 1 kilo aardappelen (zie Vegetariërs.nl).

In het bewuste krantenartikel, vergezeld door het artikel ‘Kippen en varkens moeten geduld hebben’ in de Verdieping van de krant, wordt gesteld dat GroenLinks nog zijn best deed om Paars-plus te laten afspreken over hervorming van de intensieve veehouderij, maar nu er over een rechtse coalitie wordt gesproken "schuift er geen enkele partij aan die de bio-industrie belangrijk genoeg vindt om er tekst aan te wijden in een nieuw regeerakkoord." De afgelopen regeerperiode is het niet gelukt om hardere eisen te stellen voor de huisvesting van dieren in de bio-industrie, ondanks een nipte meerderheid in de Kamer van de diervriendelijke partijen, zo stelt de krant. CDA en VVD, al dan niet met steun van de PVV, SGP of ChristenUnie, wisten deze hardere huisvestingseisen steeds uit te stellen. “Zo zou de ‘verrijkte kooi’ – een luxere versie van de legbatterij – in 2017 worden verboden, maar op verzoek van het CDA geldt dat verbod pas vanaf 2021”, schrijft correspondente Ingrid Weel. Het artikel biedt vervolgens de volgende conclusie:

"In de nieuwe Kamer hebben CDA, VVD en PVV gedrieën 76 zetels, een meerderheid, en dus hebben ze geen hulp meer nodig van anderen – hoe klein ook – om de bio- industrie die circa 122 miljoen dieren houdt, in huidige intensiteit en onder de bestaande omstandigheden te laten doorgaan."

Uit het artikel in de Verdieping blijkt dat Nederland het in Europees verband eigenlijk nog best goed doet op het gebied van dierenwelzijn. “Met 0,8 vierkante meter leefruimte per vleesvarken is Nederland koploper in Europa.” De Europese norm schijnt 0,65 vierkante meter te zijn. De Nederlandse bio-industrie huisvest 12 miljoen varkens verdeeld over ongeveer 9000 varkenshouderijen (zo’n 1.333 varkens per houderij dus). De meeste varkens leven echter hooguit maar een half jaar, wat het mogelijk maakt dan ons land elk jaar ruim 20 miljoen varkens levert. “De meeste mestvarkens leven in kale, donkere hokken.”

En kippen? Onze bio-industrie houdt 97 miljoen kippen op zo’n 2400 landbouwbedrijven (dat wil zeggen ongeveer 40.416 kippen per bedrijf). Deze kippen bestaan uit 47 miljoen leghennen en 50 miljoen vleeskuikens. Er worden elk jaar in Nederland echter ten minste 350 miljoen vleeskuikens geslacht. Deze kuikens leven namelijk ook maar erg kort:

"in zes weken tijd wordt het kuikentje vetgemest tot een vleeskip van ruim twee kilo. In de natuur bereikt een kuiken dat gewicht bij twaalf weken. Deze snelle groei levert veel problemen op, zoals pijnlijke gewrichtsontstekingen en borstblaren. Soms zakt de kip door haar poten omdat die het gewicht niet meer kan dragen. Miljoenen kuikens sterven voordat ze de slachtleeftijd hebben gehaald",

zo verteld de Verdieping ons. In een legbatterij beschikt een kip over een kooi van 45 centimeter hoog die haar 450 vierkante centimeter ruimte biedt. De zogenaamde ‘verrijkte kooi’ daarentegen heeft een oppervlakte van 750 vierkante centimeter per kip en is 5 centimeter hoger. De gewone legbatterij zal vanaf 2012 verboden zijn in Europa, de luxere versie ervan is in Nederland verboden vanaf 2021 (de bedoeling was 2017, maar daar heeft het CDA een stokje voor gestoken). Ongeveer de helft van de legkippen worden gehouden in een legbatterij of verrijkte kooi. Daarnaast is zo’n veertig procent scharrelkip. Deze scharrelkippen komen echter ook nooit buiten. De krant stelt dat

"de kip ‘scharrelt’ in een schuur voorzien van ramen waardoor het daglicht naar binnen kan komen. Van het vloeroppervlak in de kippenschuur is eenderde deel met houtkrullen bedekt, zodat de kippen daar kunnen scharrelen. De rest van de vloer is bedekt met roosters, waaronder de mest ligt. […] Ook van de scharrelkip wordt de punt van de snavel afgebrand, zodat ze elkaar niet doodpikken. Dit afbranden van de snavelpunten gebeurt trouwens ook bij graskippen en soms bij Eko-kippen, maar zij komen wel zo goed als dagelijks buiten en hebben ruim dertig tot veertig keer zo veel ruimte als een kip in de legbatterij."

Misschien dat veel mensen niet meer zozeer opkijken van verhalen zoals deze; kippen en varkens worden toch vooral als voedsel gezien. Maar hoe zit dat met bijvoorbeeld konijnen. Het blijkt dat de bio-industrie in Nederland ook 310.000 konijnen huisvest (een feit waarvan ik, misschien heel onwetend, niet op de hoogte was). Konijnen zien wij toch echter vooral als huisdieren (of niet?). In 2009 bedroeg de totale konijnenstapel zo’n 40.000 voedsters en 270.000 vleeskonijnen. Deze konijnen leven in hokken met een hoogte van 30 centimeter. Konijnenfokkers zijn echter van plan dit met maar liefst 10 centimeter te verhogen, zodat de konijnen zich kunnen oprichten (met de huidige hokhoogte kunnen de konijnen zich dus niet eens oprichten!). De hokken van vrouwtjes (voedsters) worden zelfs verhoogt tot 60 centimeter zodat zij volledig kunnen staan. Verder schijnen er nog meer aanpassingen te gaan plaatsvinden. Zo worden de hokbodems van draadgaas aangepast, omdat de dieren hun voetzolen daaraan openhalen.

0,8 in plaats van 0,65 vierkante meter leefruimte per varken. 40 centimeter hokhoogte in plaats van 30. Van legbatterij naar veredelde legbatterij. Als dit alle ‘verbetering’ is die er inzit met een kleine meerderheid van diervriendelijke partijen in de Kamer, dan vrees ik voor de dieren in de bio-industrie die moeten leven (als je het leven kunt noemen) onder een rechtse coalitie van CDA, VVD en PVV.

No more waiting!

2010-07-18T16:10:00.002+02:00

The stressful days of nervously waiting are over! I received the liberating news that I got an 8 (out of 10) for my thesis. I am probably as much happy as I am surprised (apparently my boyfriend already knew I was going to get an 8, and my dad predicted it as well, but I was definitely not so sure!). Mostly I am just relieved the waiting is over, and that I apparently did a pretty good job. Tomorrow I will be baking celebratory cupcakes!

Privacy first?

2010-07-15T21:20:00.017+02:00

Mijn moeder en ik hadden al lang geleden bedacht om samen een mooie, verre reis te gaan ondernemen na mijn afstuderen en daarom trakteert ze me in oktober op een rondreis door China (ze weigert mij te laten meebetalen, wat ik tegelijkertijd enigszins frustrerend, maar ook ontzettend lief vind). Omdat ik tijdens mijn volwassen leven nog niet buiten Europa ben geweest, en dus altijd slechts een identiteitskaart nodig heb gehad, moest ik nu voor het eerst mijn eigen paspoort aanvragen. Normaal zou mijn grootste zorg zijn geweest om voor een enigszins degelijke pasfoto te zorgen (wat helaas weer compleet is mislukt!), maar nu gingen mijn gedachten in de eerste plaats uit naar het feit dat ik mijn vingerafdrukken zou moeten afgeven. Mijn eerste, gevoelsmatige reactie hierop was er één van weerstand en afkeer, maar eigenlijk wist niet eens precies wat het nu allemaal inhield. Tijd om op onderzoek uit te gaan dus.

Naar aanleiding van een Verordening van de Europese Unie – ‘Verordening (EG) Nr. 2252/2004 van de Raad van 13 december 2004 betreffende normen voor de veiligheidskenmerken van en biometrische gegevens in door de lidstaten afgegeven paspoorten en reisdocumenten' – moest de Nederlandse Paspoortwet gewijzigd worden. De Paspoortwet bepaalt nu dat een reisdocument niet alleen voorzien moet zijn van een gezichtsopname en een handtekening, maar ook van twee vingerafdrukken. De Nederlandse wet maakt het ook mogelijk om de vingerafdrukken op te slaan in een databank. Bij het aanvragen van een paspoort moet je daarom niet twee, maar vier vingerafdrukken afgeven bij de gemeente. “Twee afdrukken komen op een chip in de pas, alle vier gaan ze in een – nu nog – gemeentelijke database. Uiteindelijk komen alle vingerafdrukken in een centraal bestand.” (zie 'Vingerafdrukken voor de database' op nrc.nl). De Europese verordening verlangt echter helemaal niet van EU-staten om zo’n (centrale) databank op te richten. Bovendien is een vingerafdrukken-database ook niet noodzakelijk voor het vervullen van het doel van de verordening.

Volgens de EU dient de opname van vingerafdrukken in reisdocumenten ter bescherming tegen fraude en vervalsing, en “tegelijkertijd moeten er biometrische identificatiemiddelen in het paspoort worden opgenomen, zodat een betrouwbaar verband kan worden gelegd tussen de rechtmatige houder en het document.” (preambule paragraaf (2) van de EU Verordening). Om dit doel te verwezenlijken is echter geen databank nodig. Naast het feit dat deze databank dus overbodig is bij het voorkomen van paspoortfraude, is het oprichten ervan mogelijk zelfs in strijd met het recht op privacy.

Het recht op privacy is ondermeer vastgelegd in de Nederlandse Grondwet en in het Europese Verdrag tot bescherming van de rechten van de mens en de fundamentele vrijheden (‘EVRM’):

“Ieder heeft, behoudens bij of krachtens de wet te stellen beperkingen, recht op eerbiediging van zijn persoonlijke levenssfeer.” (Artikel 10, lid 1, van de Grondwet)
“Een ieder heeft recht op respect voor zijn privé leven, zijn familie- en gezinsleven, zijn woning en zijn correspondentie.” (Artikel 8, lid 1, van het EVRM)

Bovendien heeft het Europees Hof voor de Rechten van de Mens ('EHRM') een relevante uitspraak gedaan over het recht op privacy en het bewaren van vingerafdrukken. Mr. S. (slechts 11 jaar oud op dat moment) en Mr. Marper waren beide gearresteerd in 2001, waarbij vingerafdrukken en DNA-materiaal van hen was afgenomen. Beide mannen waren echter niet veroordeeld en vroegen daarom of hun vingerafdrukken en DNA-materiaal vernietigd mocht worden, wat de politie vervolgens weigerde te doen. Na verschillende nationale rechtzaken, belandde de zaak bij het EHRM. In de 'Case of S. and Marper v. The United Kingdom' redeneert het Hof dat vingerafdrukken dan wel minder informatie kunnen verschaffen dan DNA-materiaal, zij toch beschouwd moeten worden als persoonlijke gegevens. Het Hof concludeert dan ook dat het bewaren van vingerafdrukken in een landelijke database een schending inhoudt van het recht op privacy. Gezien deze uitspraak, lijkt het mij duidelijk dat het Nederlandse besluit om de vingerafdrukken van iedere Nederlander op te slaan in een centrale datebank ook strijdig is met het recht op privacy.

Nederlandse wetgeving bevat bovendien nog meer gedetailleerde regels wat betreft het vastleggen van persoonlijke gegevens. De Grondwet bepaalt dat de wet regels stelt “[…] ter bescherming van de persoonlijke levenssfeer in verband met het vastleggen en verstrekken van persoonsgegevens.” (Artikel 10, lid 2). Op basis hiervan is de Wet Bescherming Persoonsgegevens in het leven geroepen. Deze wet stelt onder andere voorwaarden voor de rechtmatige verwerking van persoonsgegevens. Hierbij worden ‘persoonsgegevens’ gedefinieerd als “elk gegeven betreffende een geïdentificeerde of identificeerbare natuurlijke persoon” (Artikel 1, lid a), en onder de 'verwerking van persoonsgegevens’ wordt onder andere het verzamelen, vastleggen en bewaren van gegevens verstaan (Artikel 1, lid b). Hier valt dus ook het aanleggen van een databank onder. De Wet Bescherming Persoonsgegevens bepaalt ondermeer het volgende:

Persoonsgegevens mogen slechts worden verwerkt indien de betrokkene – dat wil zeggen degene op wie de persoonsgegevens betrekking hebben – voor deze verwerking ondubbelzinnig toestemming heeft verleend (Artikel 8, lid a). Geven wij echter wel ondubbelzinnig onze toestemming voor het opslaan van onze vingerafdrukken? Mij lijkt van niet. We worden eerder gedwongen tot het afstaan van onze afdrukken, want als we dit niet doen, krijgen we geen paspoort (en zouden we dus niet naar China, om zomaar even een land te noemen, kunnen reizen).
“Persoonsgegevens worden niet langer bewaard in een vorm die het mogelijk maakt de betrokkene te identificeren, dan noodzakelijk is voor de verwerkelijking van de doeleinden waarvoor zij worden verzameld of vervolgens worden verwerkt” (artikel 10, lid 1). Onze vingerafdrukken zullen echter oneindig, voor onbepaalde tijd, worden bewaard in de databank.
Persoonsgegevens dienen op een behoorlijke en zorgvuldige wijze te worden verwerkt (artikel 6) en persoonsgegevens dienen beveiligt te worden tegen verlies of tegen enige vorm van onrechtmatige verwerking (artikel 13). Echter, onze vingerafdrukken worden al verzameld en decentraal opgeslagen nog voordat er een veilige centrale databank is aangelegd. Ook bestaan er sterke twijfels over de veiligheid van de toekomstige databank alsook van het paspoort zelf (zie bijvoorbeeld 'Vijf zere plekken van de vingerafdrukdatabase' op WebWereld.nl en 'Nieuw paspoort met vingerafdrukken onveilig?', een video op Netwerk.nl).

Deze privacy vraagstukken rondom de vernieuwde Paspoortwet zijn natuurlijk niet onopgemerkt gebleven. Zo weigerde de Utrechtse student Aaron Boudewijn zijn vingerafdrukken af te geven toen hij een paspoort aanvroeg. Hij vond het prima dat zijn afdrukken op het paspoort terecht zouden komen, maar niet dat deze in een databank zouden worden opgeslagen. Toen hem vervolgens geen paspoort werd gegeven, ging hij in beroep bij de rechter (zie 'Student naar rechter om vingerafdruk paspoort'). Daarnaast is ook de stichting Privacy First, samen met 22 particulieren, naar de rechter gestapt. De stichting eist dat de Paspoortwet ongeldig wordt verklaard, "omdat de wetgeving volgens de advocaten haaks staat op andere regelgeving, niet af is, én niet doet wat Europa met de richtlijn vraagt, moet de rechter de wetgeving afschaffen." (zie 'Staat aangeklaagd om vingerafdrukdatabase' op WebWereld.nl, en ook de website van de stichting, PrivacyFirst.nl).

De overheid heeft dan ook, voor het aanleggen van de vingerafdrukken-databank, een Big Brother Award gewonnen. Daarnaast mochten ook Minister Guusje ter Horst van Binnenlandse Zaken, Vodafone en T-Mobile (vanwege het ongevraagd doorsturen van sms-berichten naar de AIVD en politie) en de politie (vanwege het idee om de bodyscanner mobiel in te gaan zetten bij controles) een award in ontvangst nemen (zie 'Vijf grootste privacyschenders van Nederland' op WebWereld.nl).

Ik moet zeggen, ik zou ook graag weigeren om mijn vingerafdrukken af te geven (zou ik me nog kunnen aansluiten bij de 22 Privacy First-burgers?). Maar ik wil ook wel heel erg graag naar China in oktober, en daarom heb ik dan toch een paar dagen geleden mijn nieuwe paspoort, inclusief vingerafdrukken en vreselijke pasfoto, afgehaald bij het stadhuis. Als Privacy First zijn zaak wint, sta ik echter weer net zo snel bij de vriendelijke dame achter de balie bij het stadhuis om er persoonlijk voor te zorgen dat mijn vingerafdrukken van de computer worden verwijderd!

Inedible corn

2010-07-14T16:32:00.002+02:00

I came across a peculiar little article in the newspaper (Trouw) today. It reported that a cornfield had arisen between enormous office buildings and the 'Vrije Universiteit' in Amsterdam. The field had been empty, and was probably going to be empty for a while until homes were going to be build on it. The 'gemeentedienst Zuidas' decided to do something fun and useful with it in the meantime; now corn, later something else. People who live or work in the neighbourhood can make suggestions.

Obviously I am all for this idea, we should indeed do something useful with an empty field like that. However, the thing that I have a (small) problem with is what they intend to do with the corn after it is harvested. Apparently the corn is not meant for human consumption, since the kind of corn that we can eat needs a lot more maintenance. Therefore, the corn will be going to a petting zoo or a farmer. Can it thus be concluded that while the corn is not meant for human consumption, it is meant for animal consumption? Based on the article, it would appear so. And here is my problem: Corn should not be used to feed animals! Cows in particular cannot digest it; they are meant to feed on grass and when you put them on a corn-based diet they will get (fatally) ill. For more information on this, see for instance an interview with Michael Pollan on pbs.org or the article 'Grass-Fed Beef...the Healthier Choice?' on PreventDisease.com. I can also highly recommend the documentaries Food Inc. and King Corn, in which this issue, among many other food- and corn-related issues, is discussed.

I would therefore like to make the following suggestion (although I do not live in the neighbourhood in question, or anywhere near Amsterdam for that matter): If you want to make an empty field useful (and please do), you should probably grow something on it that either humans or animals can actually eat.

Doubt is not a pleasant state of mind

2010-07-08T17:02:00.006+02:00

Do you know that feeling of doubt that you get the minute you hand in a paper, turn in the answers to an exam, or mail a letter of application for that job you really want? I suppose this has to do with the fact that it is out of your hands now, you cannot change anything anymore, it's final (and for perfectionists like myself, this is down right terrifying!). Ever since I have handed in the final version of my thesis, I have had all kinds of doubts: Shouldn't I have gone with a different title? Does the conclusion really say what I want it to say? There aren't any spelling mistakes in there anymore, are there? Did I articulate my arguments clearly enough so that they make the point I want them to make? For almost a week now I have been in this rather unpleasent state of mind, which is only made worse by visions of my supervisor laughing out loud while judging my thesis, and using a big red pen to cross out entire sections of it (which, I must say, is not at all fair to my supervisor, since she has been nothing but kind and supportive). So I must admit, I am going a bit insane while waiting to hear what my supervisor's final judgment will be.

My thesis, by the way, is titled 'Complementarity in the situation of Uganda. Is Uganda unwilling to genuinely prosecute the leaders of the LRA?'. It discusses the principle of complementarity, which is one of the founding principles of the International Criminal Court ('ICC'). This principle regulates the relationship between the ICC and national courts; it provides that the ICC may only assume jurisdiction over a case when national judicial systems are not willing or able to genuinely investigate or prosecute that case themselves. In my thesis, I focussed on the situation of Uganda in particular and researched the question whether it is willing to genuinely prosecute the leaders of the Lord's Resistance Army ('LRA') or whether it intends to shield them from criminal responsibility by carrying out sham trials.

The LRA is a rebel movement that has been terrorizing the people of Northern Uganda for more than two decades. Over the years they have also become active in Southern Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo ('DRC'), and the Central African Republic. Although the governments of Uganda and the DRC would like us to believe that the LRA is no longer a serious threat, a recent attack in the DRC proves them wrong. In December 2009, LRA rebels brutally killed at least 231 civilians (including at least 13 women and 23 children, the youngest a 3-year-old girl who was burned to death) and abducted 250 others (including at least 80 children) during a four-day rampage in a northeastern area of the DRC (see 'Trail of Death: LRA Atrocities in Northeastern Congo', a report by Human Rights Watch based on a fact-finding mission in the area in February 2010).

The President of Uganda, Museveni, referred the situation regarding the LRA to the ICC in 2003, since his government had not been able to deal with the rebel group itself. The Chief Prosecutor of the ICC decided to open an investigation into the situation in 2004 and a year later petitioned the Court (Pre-Trail Chamber II) to issue warrants of arrest for several leaders of the LRA, which were issued soon thereafter. Apparantly this made the LRA finally willing to enter into peace negotiations with the Ugandan Government, something they had always resisted before. The Juba talks, named after the Sudanese city in which they were held, commenced in July 2006 under the mediation of the Government of Southern Sudan. The arrest warrants of the ICC soon proved to be a main point of contention, as the LRA declared itself absolutely unwilling to sign a peace agreement as long as these warrants remained in effect. The Government of Uganda, however, would not request the ICC to withdraw its warrants until a peace agreement is signed (and even then, the warrants would not necessarily be withdrawn, since only the ICC itself can make this happen). Nonetheless, on 29 June 2007 an agreement, the Agreement on Accountability and Reconciliation, was reached (which unfortunately remains unsigned until this day). Almost a year later, after the Juba talks had been reopened, an annexure to the agreement was agreed upon (which, strangly enough, did receive the parties' signatures). This annexure provided, among other things, for the establishment of a special division of the High Court of Uganda for the prosecution of persons who are alleged to have committed serious crimes during the conflict. It is suggested that those involved in the planning of attacks, such as the leaders who were indicted by the ICC, will be tried by this division of the High Court whereas other rebels who have committed less serious offences may receive amnesty (under the 2000 Amnesty Act) or will be dealt with by means of so-called 'alternative justice mechanisms'. Why, if Uganda intends to formally prosecute the leaders of the LRA and has even established a special division of the High Court to this end, did I research the question whether Uganda is unwilling to genuinely prosecute these leaders?

The negotiated agreement introduces a regime of alternative penalties and sanctions, which will also be applicable to the LRA leaders. However, it is nowhere explained what such alternative penalties might be. It is indicated, though, that they will promote reconciliation and rehabilitation and shall take into account a person's admissions or other cooperation with proceedings. Therefore, it appears that alternative sanctions are likely to be lighter than regular sanctions. This raises the question whether Uganda may be intending to carry out sham proceedings in order to shield the leaders of the LRA from criminal responsibility. The Statute of the ICC provides that if a state shields perpetrators in such a manner, it is unwilling to undertake genuine proceedings and the ICC may exercise its jurisdiction over the case in question. However, I found that Uganda might actually not be so unwilling.

Yes, one could argue that since Uganda itself referred the case to the ICC, it was never willing to deal with it itself and always preferred the Court to take over. However, it could also be argued that Uganda made this referral on false assumptions. The Government of Uganda felt it needed help with the situation concerning the LRA, because the LRA was not within its jurisdiction (originally they were operating out of Sudan, but now they appear to be hiding out in the Central African Republic) and it has never been able to arrest the leaders. However, the ICC is in no better position to arrest them. The ICC has no police force of its own and is therefore dependent upon states parties to effectuate its arrest warrants. Uganda has over the years made various serious attempts to apprehend the LRA leaders and continues to do so. Also, as I have said, a special division of the High Court is being established for their prosecution. Furthermore, the Ugandan Parliament passed the 2006 ICC Bill, which enables Ugandan courts to try, convict, and sentence individuals who have committed ICC crimes (genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes). The 2000 Amnesty Act has also been amended to create the possibility of excluding the LRA leaders from being granted amnesty. I believe such developments are indicative of Uganda's willingness to genuinely prosecute the leaders of the LRA. As for the regime of alternative sanctions created by the peace agreement, Ugandan law provides for heavier sentences (such as the death penalty) than the sentencing regime of the ICC, and the Consitution of Uganda determines that the courts shall be independent and shall not be subject to the control or direction of any person or authority. Therefore, the judges of the Ugandan High Court should base their judgments on the current sentencing regime, not on the regime of alternative sanctions provided for by the peace agreement. I feel we should trust these judges to act independently and allow Uganda to prosecute the leaders of the LRA. To do this, would be in accordance with the principle of complementarity.

I conclude my thesis by discussing how the case against the LRA leaders could be transferred from the ICC to the judicial system of Uganda and what the ICC Prosecutor thereafter can do to regain control over the case if it becomes evident that Uganda is trying to shield the leaders after all.
(Interested in reading my thesis? Click here)

Doing this research has been pretty interesting and I must admit I might actually be kind of proud of the finishing product (dispite all of my doubts). All that is left for me to do now, is to nervously await an email from my supervisor telling me she has come to a conclusion as to the grading of my thesis.

"Doubt is not a pleasant state of mind, but certainty is absurd." --Voltaire

Welcome

2010-07-07T21:18:00.011+02:00

Welcome to my blog!

Watch me explore, dream, and discover as I try to figure out what I want to do after graduating law school.

I suppose with this blog I will be exploring the possibility of writing (I've always been interested in journalism). Although I have no clue whether I'll be any good at it, I will be giving it a try anywhy, because... well, why not?! What will I be writing about? Whatever I happen to find interesting at that time. Why in English? So I can keep practising, and hopefully improving, my writing skills in English (but I suppose when it would be more appropriate, or just easier, I will switch to Dutch).

Enjoy! (hopefully)