Spider, spider on the floor

I don't know if it is the same for you, but the title brings a tune to my head immediately =) This particular spider isn't on the wall as the rhyme goes, but two days ago I was happily taking out flower bulbs from some flower pots when this white, tiny thingy caught my eye. It looked like a small golf ball with texture and suddenly I saw it was attached to a spider ... must be an egg apparently. I don't like spiders all that much but high time to start photographing again and since I like to try closer shots or try macro photography; here goes:



It's been an awful amount of time since I last blogged. As you probably noticed I just ignored that fact and started again. Will try to change my ways =)

Lost & Found

I've blogged about these things before, possibly even in the same post but I just love it so much that I'll report it AGAIN!

I'm a regular reader of the secrets people publish on the blog postsecret.com and the Dutch site briefgeheimen.nl and just followed a link on postsecret to this site: FoundMagazine.

It's about things (notes, pictures, items) people randomly find in the street, their homes, a park, ... and they put it on the web. You'd think "what are the chances of people finding interesting stuff and putting them online", but I think once you know the site, you'll make more of an effort to find things. "Find" as in ... look more detailled when you go in public places and pick up papers of the ground or in class.

This is a nice "found" item on the site (and like they say in the comments section ... movie-material!).

More about finding / serendipity / sneaking

PostSecret started as an art or school project (the stuff is on wikipedia for those interested ... google it yourself hehe!) where the blogpost is published every Sunday with postcards people send in from all over the world. Homemade postcards with people's secrets on them... I find it really interesting reading them ... sometimes your imagination wanders off and you imagine a whole story behind it. I think it's good for inspiration if I want to write a story in the future.

But about finding things and PostSecret. The blog-owner published several books with a collection of postcards he got over the years and readers make it a habit to go to the bookstores selling these books and putting their own postcards in it! Isn't it cool?! Makes you want to go to the bookstore doesn't it?

Bookcrossing and related sites also encourage readers to "release" their unwanted or read books in public spaces and post them on their website so people can look for the book. There is also a sticker you can put on the book so people who don't know the phenomenon/trend and go the site and register their "find". In the past there was only one book released in Leuven, Belgium. I could ask "anybody care to change that number?" but as I just checked the site:

List of Crossing Zones in Leuven with books in the wild...:

• Bibliotheek Tweebronnen - Rijschoolstraat 4 1 book, released about 1 wk ago
  
• in de kruidtuin op een bankje 1 book, released about 1 wk ago
  
• Novotel Leuven Centrum 15 books, most recent released about 1 wk ago

That last one was really motivated! A Belgian site for this is: Wilde Boeken but as you can see in the hunting segment for Leuven there aren't any recent wild books in Leuven.

Raymond

Raymond
Originally uploaded by nikitacortez

Raymond van het Groenewoud op 11 november 2007 in de Bozar voor Dorp op stap (cultuurparticipatie voor dorpbewoners - alsof we allemaal boerenkinkels zijn.) We waren niet echt verbonden met Dorp op stap maar we waren stoelenvullers voor één van de sponsors). Hij zong enkele mooie liedjes (waarvan een paar die ik niet kende) en werd begeleid door de 5 KBC-muziekprijs laureaten.

Enkele liedjes die hij zong: "In m'n hoofd", "Zoals gewoonlijk", "Twee meisjes op het strand", ...

Het nummer "Zoals gewoonlijk" is een nederlands lied op de muziek van "I did it my way", maar niets met die tekst te maken. Echt een sterk nummer. Gaat over de sleur die je kan bekruipen, het doen alsof, ... "zoals gewoonlijk" dus. De eerste keer dat ik Raymond live zag en hij geeft echt wel solo's aan de muzikanten en gaat er rustig bij zitten of gaat even verderop staan kijken naar die muzikanten die met veel enthousiasme zijn liedjes brengen.

Zeer kort optreden van Raymond maar goed! Ik besef nu dat ik in het Nederlands blog voor een keer, maar dat mag ook eens hé! 't Zal van de vermoeidheid zijn, dan kan ik niet meer goed nadenken! Hop mijn beddeken in ja.

A print on the wall

Wouldn't it be great if your favorite cd cover, illustration or a photograph of your best friends was ... your wall. Or if we turn it around ... wouldn't it be great if your wall ... was your favorite cd cover, illustration or a phtoograph of your best friends? IT CAN! People, get a bit more imaginative, come on! I'll probably be like the 111st blogger to blog about this ... but it's amazing! What opportunities in front us, open doors ... open! If they're not shut by a cool image such as a forest in your living room! My friend Sven put this in his living room and I was awed! If that's what you call the feeling of going "Oeeeeh".

He got this at a Dutch site and I harassed him for the link! As I made my way to blogger to post this, I stumbled upon a featured blog at the blogger home page and what do you know ... the chances of this ... come on people (I'm starting to talk like Ross the Intern whose blog I by the way watch).

The blog is called "print & pattern" and is about ... print & pattern! What are the odds! The blog features a photograph of a wall, designed by crystal barlow. A coincidence but if it wasn't for the wall presented here, I'd still love it. All sorts of crafty creations are listed on the blog. I'm adding it!

Check the sites out will you! Interior designs are my thing! Once I move! Someday!

Lovely mural

terminei
Originally uploaded by vermelho devagarinho

I always dreamt about painting the walls of my future house with my own designs. So anybody who had the same idea and already has a nudge of that magic feeling ... check out this amazing artist on flickr or her blog vermelhodevagarinho.blogspot.com.

Her kid's room is even more amazing with a flying boat. My god. Why couldn't I have that as a kid?! Love it!!

Graduation, vacation, occupation

It's been a long time, right?! But I'm still here! On the loose but posting on the blog. Ofcourse, what else?!

I'm graduated since June and I'm officially a webdesigner now. A Master even ;) Everybody keeps asking me "do you have a job already?" but noo-oo. I took the opportunity to enjoy perhaps my last vacation ever! My plan was: to graduate, to enjoy the vacation, to make money with a vacation job, then do an internship as a teacher in October-November and hopefully graduate as a teacher by December and find a REAL job in January! And it depends on my internship if the job search is about webdesigning or copywriting OR teaching. Although a combination of all would be grand. Wouldn't it ?! ;-)

So ... Graduation: check! Vacation: mhmhmhm .... theoretical check. Occupation: vacation job IS check, but the occupation and internship is pending. More information to come in September-October on that part.

Yep ... my vacation job (I'm hoping this is the correct word) starts tomorrow! At nine. In a small firm in the neighbouring town. Small as in three to four people work there, but they take on a lot of projects! I did the same job last year and I'm happy they asked me back :). I'm hoping to do a good job and hopefully I'll learn a lot.

In my spare time I'm also hoping to do a lot ... I have to clean up ... big time AND I'll have to make a website for my youth club (something like scout clubs) and a friend of mine.

Toodles!

When the summer's coming...

snowman Lars
Originally uploaded by nikitacortez

remember the winter time!

In the middle of the winter I made this clay figure Lars from a sketch I made earlier. Although I can't stand cold weather and my joints suffer from the cold, I still like the winter. Snow, the times you can see your breath, the sound when you step on snow and the opportunity to go ice-skating on a lake (not possible in my area but I can dream about it, right?!). And don't forget the sleighs, the snowmen, the snowball fights, the cosiness when you're fully dressed for the challenge of a walk in the cold.

Unfortunately, the most of those nice moments didn't happen this year. We didn't have enough snow to go with sleighs or even throw a few snowballs! And I am 21! What a misery would it be for children of 6 or 8?!

Anyway: Lars ladies and gentlemen. A man full of winter visions and memories.

I made an effort at designing last weekend because we have to make an e-portfolio in our master year. The designs can change in the near future, but I wanted you to know first hand! Although you won't see a guitar on most portfolios, I absolutely wanted it in mine. It has helped me relax and let out in these stressy months of working on my thesis ... so my friend, a Ibanez V300, can come along :)

A break would come in handy now

A good night sleep and a summer vacation without having to deal with re-examinations would come in handy now. So, if there's a power, be with me in this one!

Photographer ... me like.

Now I know this blog isn't exactly a regularly updated one nor a straight-up linkdump, but I'd like to give you another nice link: it's a photographer who I found at deviantart, and his photographs are very moody. Some dark, some happy, ... some for you to see!

shagagraf.deviantart.com