My office dispenses free coffee and, in just 3 months, I've already developed a tolerance to it. So, to fuel my fire while I work, I've moved up to Red Bull. Well, the sugar-free, knockoff version that only costs 30 cents. It has the same affect, and I think it tastes better.
I have a huge stash of it at my work locker. I've become something of a house supplier to my colleagues. I've even got my boss drinking it. On Tuesday morning, she said something like "Wow. My brain just won't switch on today." That was my cue to whip out a can and smilingly offer it to her. She must have been happy with the result because Friday morning she walked in toting a can of her own. She had bought brandname Red Bull. I was telling her that a local supermaket sells the 30-cent variety by the crate. Her eyes lit up and she said, "Maybe we should get a few those and stock them for our team."
An addict has been born. Yes, Red Bull gives you wings.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
You know you work for a bank when
a lunchtime conversation about Valentine's day leads to one of your colleague's positing a mathematical formula to determine if someone is in your dating "age range."
Apparently, to determine the bottom range:
your age/two + 7
(I'm 25, divided in half that comes to 12.5. add 7 years to that. The youngest age that I could date is 19.5. wow. that's young. )
To determine your upper range:
Your age - 7 x 2
(So my 25 years minus 7 equals 18, multiply that by 2 and you get 36. )
So I can date guys between the ages of 19.5 and 36. There's plenty of fish in the sea!
Apparently, to determine the bottom range:
your age/two + 7
(I'm 25, divided in half that comes to 12.5. add 7 years to that. The youngest age that I could date is 19.5. wow. that's young. )
To determine your upper range:
Your age - 7 x 2
(So my 25 years minus 7 equals 18, multiply that by 2 and you get 36. )
So I can date guys between the ages of 19.5 and 36. There's plenty of fish in the sea!
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Recommended Reading
This week's Economist features an article on the growing popularity of the English language in Europe. Considering my line of work, this is a matter of great interest to me. (The more Europeans speak English in their workplace, the more demand there will be for native speaker editors to correct their mistakes!)
But in general, I think this is a fascinating article that I hope you'll enjoy reading...
Economist Article
But in general, I think this is a fascinating article that I hope you'll enjoy reading...
Economist Article
Saturday, February 14, 2009
It's that day again
My least favorite day of the year has come round again. The day big business tries to make a profit by telling people they must prove their love by spending money on their significant other. Those without significant others are made to feel left out.
Well, I'm having none of it! This afternoon I visited a friend for her birthday. And then this evening I'm attending my housemate's birthday party.
I was reflecting earlier that - considering how much I hate this day - I actually have some fairly good memories of it. Last year on 14 Feb, I was in New York and attended a lecture on a photographer. I also remember the year Lisa, Tina, Marleen and me (aka the dream girls) threw a 'pink party.' That was fun.
The best Valentine's day of my life, though, has to be 2004 when Michaela (right in Greek toga) organized a girls-only dance in our college dorm. We were supposed to come dressed up as an 'idealized image of a woman.' Yes, that is me below in the burqa.
Several years later, Tina and I cropped this photo down and posted it on an online dating site. We made a fake profile of a woman named "Kadijah" supposedly posted by her father who was looking for a husband for her. I think that's a rather appropriate use for a photo was taken on Valentine's day, don't you?
Well, I'm having none of it! This afternoon I visited a friend for her birthday. And then this evening I'm attending my housemate's birthday party.
I was reflecting earlier that - considering how much I hate this day - I actually have some fairly good memories of it. Last year on 14 Feb, I was in New York and attended a lecture on a photographer. I also remember the year Lisa, Tina, Marleen and me (aka the dream girls) threw a 'pink party.' That was fun.
The best Valentine's day of my life, though, has to be 2004 when Michaela (right in Greek toga) organized a girls-only dance in our college dorm. We were supposed to come dressed up as an 'idealized image of a woman.' Yes, that is me below in the burqa.
Several years later, Tina and I cropped this photo down and posted it on an online dating site. We made a fake profile of a woman named "Kadijah" supposedly posted by her father who was looking for a husband for her. I think that's a rather appropriate use for a photo was taken on Valentine's day, don't you?
Friday, February 06, 2009
Test ur skillz
This week one of my colleagues sent out a link to a BBC English grammar quiz. I thought it was a very easy quiz, but apparently my boss and I - the people paid to be knowledgeable about English grammar - were the only ones in the office who got every question right. I took the opportunity to send out a (tongue-in-cheek) email reminding my colleagues that this is why we deserve to edit their reports.
Much good that did. The very next day I had a throw down with a colleague over something he'd written. He took offense at my edits. And he'd missed 4 questions!
For what it's worth, here's the link...
BBC Grammar Quiz
Much good that did. The very next day I had a throw down with a colleague over something he'd written. He took offense at my edits. And he'd missed 4 questions!
For what it's worth, here's the link...
BBC Grammar Quiz
Monday, February 02, 2009
Watch and cringe
This is a personnel outing from another division of my bank. it's almost too painful to watch.
BTW for the Americans: that word 'Rah-bow' that they keep repeating is the name of my company.
Sunday, February 01, 2009
Dutch adventure version 2.0
So the vicar of my Anglican church told me this morning that I seem like I'm enjoying my experiences in Holland. And he's right. Despite the bitter, bitter cold (I had to lie under the covers shivering for 20 minutes to recover from my bike ride back from church), I do really enjoy my time here.
I've noticed that sometimes when I'm walking around town or doing something by myself I'm randomly smiling. The reason for this, of course, is the great blessing that is my job. Taking bad English and making it sound professional is very gratifying. I also think my work is valuable. I'm contributing in a positive way to society.
This whole week my boss was sick with the flu. On Thursday we had a genuine crisis, and only I had the knowledge needed to resolve it. I think it took a few years off my life, but I did fix the problem in the end, thereby, of course, enhancing my own job security.
This summer in Berlin I was discussing a former job with a friend. I had had two offers and the position I chose turned out rather unpleasant, and my friend said something along the lines of, "So accepting that job was a mistake." Her use of that word jumped out at me. I thought about it and realized that I shouldn't think of my career choices in terms of mistakes. Careers are like flow charts. If you go down one route, it will open up new options which were previously closed to you. You also learn from your experiences.
As many of you know, this is my second attempt to move to and get a job in Holland. I sometimes refer to my life here as "Dutch adventure version 2.0." In version 1.0 my job, my city, my housing situation and my church were dreadful. In version 2.0 they're fantastic. Or maybe, they're just really good, but I appreciate them so much more when I compare them to the past.
While God always has a plan for our lives, He doesn't always let us see those plans. When I consider that the crazy mix of impulsive choices and leaps of faith that I call "my career" actually fit together pretty well and brought me where I am today, it fills me with awe - and with excitement over all the other ways God is working that I can't see. And then I start smiling again.
I've noticed that sometimes when I'm walking around town or doing something by myself I'm randomly smiling. The reason for this, of course, is the great blessing that is my job. Taking bad English and making it sound professional is very gratifying. I also think my work is valuable. I'm contributing in a positive way to society.
This whole week my boss was sick with the flu. On Thursday we had a genuine crisis, and only I had the knowledge needed to resolve it. I think it took a few years off my life, but I did fix the problem in the end, thereby, of course, enhancing my own job security.
This summer in Berlin I was discussing a former job with a friend. I had had two offers and the position I chose turned out rather unpleasant, and my friend said something along the lines of, "So accepting that job was a mistake." Her use of that word jumped out at me. I thought about it and realized that I shouldn't think of my career choices in terms of mistakes. Careers are like flow charts. If you go down one route, it will open up new options which were previously closed to you. You also learn from your experiences.
As many of you know, this is my second attempt to move to and get a job in Holland. I sometimes refer to my life here as "Dutch adventure version 2.0." In version 1.0 my job, my city, my housing situation and my church were dreadful. In version 2.0 they're fantastic. Or maybe, they're just really good, but I appreciate them so much more when I compare them to the past.
While God always has a plan for our lives, He doesn't always let us see those plans. When I consider that the crazy mix of impulsive choices and leaps of faith that I call "my career" actually fit together pretty well and brought me where I am today, it fills me with awe - and with excitement over all the other ways God is working that I can't see. And then I start smiling again.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Stuck in the past
On Friday, I took a day off work to travel to the Hague (which is actually quite close to where I live) for an all-day seminar entitled "Conservatism and Western Civilization" put on by a Dutch conservative think tank. While I consider myself more libertarian than conservative, I thought I would still have much in common with participants at such a gathering.I confess to being a trifle underwhelmed. A criticism which is frequently leveled at conservatives is that they want to turn the clock back to the 1950s. And, well, that would that be a fairly accurate summary of Friday's seminar: "Everything was better in the 1950s." That's certainly not what I believe, and I was sorry to hear that view being propounded, particularly because it goes hand-in-hand with another great conservative vice: a tendency to complain about how bad society is.
I felt like I was in an Alchoholics Anonymous meeting as we went around the room and people confessed how poor their education had been. ("I was only required to read 15 books in my French class, whereas my father had to read 30.") IMHO, if you think your education was bad, it's kind of your own fault. There's no reason why you can't read those extra 15 books in your own time. I was also a little frustrated because I asked several questions which were not answered.
Oh well. I wouldn't say I wasted my time. For me, this seminar had a lot of symbolic meaning. I was conscious of the fact that in taking a day off from my cool corporate job to go to a political seminar in the Hague I was living out one of my dreams.
At the end of the day, one of the speakers gave a long list of books that he said everyone should read before they get involved in politics. I am pleased to say that I had actually read all of them. And I am definitely going to get involved in Dutch politics, I've finally picked a political party to join. I am already plotting my participation in/conquest of their youth division.
Stay tuned for more on that...
Sunday, January 18, 2009
My so-called Dutch life
Sunday night already? This weekend feels like it was very long and very short at the same time.
I managed to actually leave my office early Friday (like I'm supposed to under my contract but somehow never do). I am busy editing my company's new handbook. It's basically all the guidelines about reimbursements, calling in sick etc. While it's tempting to find this a bit of a boring task, I'm reminding myself that bringing good style and grammar to mundane, everyday material is actually the most important part of my calling as an editor.
Saturday I went to Hilversum to appear as a guest on a radio news show to discuss Obama's inauguration. It went pretty well, but I wouldn't call it my greatest success. So I won't put a link on this blog. If you're really desperate to hear me, I am sure you can google it out.
After I finished up at the studio, I went shopping in Hilversum and found a really cool pair of black velvet pants in the post-Christmas sales. That was definitely the most important part of the day.
This morning I attended service at the Anglican church here. It was my second visit and certainly won't be my last. I must say I feel a lot more at home there than in the Dutch churches I've visited. They're so...Dutch. And every day that I live here I see more and more how not Dutch I am. (That isn't to say that I don't love it here. I do. Moi j'adore Utrecht.)
I had a very nice time chatting with the parisioners and then biked through the pouring rain to see my friend Jacqueline. She interned with my dad 4 years ago. I'd only met her briefly then because I was living in DC, and I was in a stressful work situation at the time. So it was fantastic to see her again and talk in a relaxed way. She knows my family quite well. So we talked about them, about books, poetry, careers, real estate and generally what it's like to be an independent twentysomething woman. All this over wonderful Koffie Verkeerd next to a window on a canal. Is there a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon? I'm sure I can't think of one.
So tomorrow it's back to the handbook. It will be a pretty busy week for me. Monday evening I'm grabbing tea with my friend Marleen who also lives in Utrecht, Wednesday my friend Moniek is coming to visit me from Rotterdam, Friday I'm going to an all-day political seminar in the Hague.
But, of course, Thursday is the most important day of them all: the return of LOST!!! The best television show of all time. I've been waiting 7 months for this day. (btw, US LOST-loving Green Stick readers: Yes, LOST comes back on Wednesday for you. Don't panic. It's Thursday for me due to the time difference)
So please do not Skype, text, email, or facebook me or attempt to contact me in any other way on Thursday evening. Thank you for your consideration.
I managed to actually leave my office early Friday (like I'm supposed to under my contract but somehow never do). I am busy editing my company's new handbook. It's basically all the guidelines about reimbursements, calling in sick etc. While it's tempting to find this a bit of a boring task, I'm reminding myself that bringing good style and grammar to mundane, everyday material is actually the most important part of my calling as an editor.
Saturday I went to Hilversum to appear as a guest on a radio news show to discuss Obama's inauguration. It went pretty well, but I wouldn't call it my greatest success. So I won't put a link on this blog. If you're really desperate to hear me, I am sure you can google it out.
After I finished up at the studio, I went shopping in Hilversum and found a really cool pair of black velvet pants in the post-Christmas sales. That was definitely the most important part of the day.
This morning I attended service at the Anglican church here. It was my second visit and certainly won't be my last. I must say I feel a lot more at home there than in the Dutch churches I've visited. They're so...Dutch. And every day that I live here I see more and more how not Dutch I am. (That isn't to say that I don't love it here. I do. Moi j'adore Utrecht.)
I had a very nice time chatting with the parisioners and then biked through the pouring rain to see my friend Jacqueline. She interned with my dad 4 years ago. I'd only met her briefly then because I was living in DC, and I was in a stressful work situation at the time. So it was fantastic to see her again and talk in a relaxed way. She knows my family quite well. So we talked about them, about books, poetry, careers, real estate and generally what it's like to be an independent twentysomething woman. All this over wonderful Koffie Verkeerd next to a window on a canal. Is there a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon? I'm sure I can't think of one.
So tomorrow it's back to the handbook. It will be a pretty busy week for me. Monday evening I'm grabbing tea with my friend Marleen who also lives in Utrecht, Wednesday my friend Moniek is coming to visit me from Rotterdam, Friday I'm going to an all-day political seminar in the Hague.
But, of course, Thursday is the most important day of them all: the return of LOST!!! The best television show of all time. I've been waiting 7 months for this day. (btw, US LOST-loving Green Stick readers: Yes, LOST comes back on Wednesday for you. Don't panic. It's Thursday for me due to the time difference)
So please do not Skype, text, email, or facebook me or attempt to contact me in any other way on Thursday evening. Thank you for your consideration.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
life's a beach
So this has been a very good week for me. I was once again positively evaluated by my boss. Apparently, she's been getting compliments from other members of our division around the globe on how well my team is doing.
I am now having to set my so-called targets for 2009. Basically, it's a very detailed list of what I want to accomplish. My annual bonus is connected to whether or not I meet these targets. The first time I ever heard about targets was two years ago from someone at another bank who said he deliberately set his targets extra low so that he'd get a bigger bonus. wow. I asked my boss about this. She said that some people do it, but it ultimately hurts your chances of getting promoted.
This target setting thing seems pretty challenging. They have to be quite specific. (so, "be awesome" is not an acceptable target.) If any of you have suggestions, please email me.
In other good news, I got a call today from another Dutch radio program asking me to appear live (as in, no editing of my pre-recorded words) to discuss American Evangelical response to Obama. It will be this Saturday. No doubt a link will be posted here shortly after.
So watch this space...
I am now having to set my so-called targets for 2009. Basically, it's a very detailed list of what I want to accomplish. My annual bonus is connected to whether or not I meet these targets. The first time I ever heard about targets was two years ago from someone at another bank who said he deliberately set his targets extra low so that he'd get a bigger bonus. wow. I asked my boss about this. She said that some people do it, but it ultimately hurts your chances of getting promoted.
This target setting thing seems pretty challenging. They have to be quite specific. (so, "be awesome" is not an acceptable target.) If any of you have suggestions, please email me.
In other good news, I got a call today from another Dutch radio program asking me to appear live (as in, no editing of my pre-recorded words) to discuss American Evangelical response to Obama. It will be this Saturday. No doubt a link will be posted here shortly after.
So watch this space...
Monday, January 12, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
The week that was
Just wanted to drop a quick "proof of life" post. I've been very, very busy this week with my job (which is, after all, the reason I came to Holland). Apparently, all my hard work is paying off, though. Thursday I had another evaluation chat with my boss, and she gave me positive feedback.
Thursday and Friday I went out after work with my colleagues. Thursday we went to the pub in the basement of our company's HQ. I really don't enjoy these sorts of hanging-around-drinking-beer-with-loud-music-in-the-background sorts of events. So Friday when people suggested going to "dinner" I was thrilled, thinking we'd go to a restaurant where we could chat over good food with pleasant ambience. To my colleagues, however, going to dinner means going to a bar for 2 hours before going to the restaurant. (It also means going to another bar afterward, but at that point I excused myself.)
Saturday to Sunday I went to stay with some very dear family friends. I relaxed, read, listened to music, chatted, drank rooibos tea and generally had a lovely time. These friends live in the old farming town of Bunschoten. At church on Sunday morning, there were at least a dozen ladies dressed like this:
I think that is awesome, albeit not very warm in these unbelievably cold winter days.
So now I'm back in my little room in Utrecht, savoring a few quiet hours before the work week starts all over again.
Thursday and Friday I went out after work with my colleagues. Thursday we went to the pub in the basement of our company's HQ. I really don't enjoy these sorts of hanging-around-drinking-beer-with-loud-music-in-the-background sorts of events. So Friday when people suggested going to "dinner" I was thrilled, thinking we'd go to a restaurant where we could chat over good food with pleasant ambience. To my colleagues, however, going to dinner means going to a bar for 2 hours before going to the restaurant. (It also means going to another bar afterward, but at that point I excused myself.)
Saturday to Sunday I went to stay with some very dear family friends. I relaxed, read, listened to music, chatted, drank rooibos tea and generally had a lovely time. These friends live in the old farming town of Bunschoten. At church on Sunday morning, there were at least a dozen ladies dressed like this:
I think that is awesome, albeit not very warm in these unbelievably cold winter days.
So now I'm back in my little room in Utrecht, savoring a few quiet hours before the work week starts all over again.
Sunday, January 04, 2009
Emma takes to Dutch airwaves again, gets censored
Recently, I was approached by a Dutch radio news program to write a column on things President Bush did right during his time in office. They were planning a special 2.5 hour retrospective on the Bush presidency and needed someone to say something (anything!) good about the guy. Naturally, I would be well compensated for my exertions.
I wrote what I thought was a fairly decent column and submitted it to their producers who said it was fine. Tuesday, despite my illness, I visited their studio in Hilversum to pre-record it.
On Friday morning when the show aired, I heard my own voice, but I did not recognize my words. They had completely edited my column! They changed the order around and deleted a long passage that I had considered to be the "heart" of what I was trying to say.
My initial reaction was to pitch a fit. But then (after a few hours) I realized that, on the whole, being upset that one of the country's leading radio news programs has edited your column is not such a bad problem to have.
If you speak Dutch and are so inclined, here is a link to 'my' column. Click on Deel 4, and my segment starts at 21:35.
Click here for Emma's edited column
oh, and to add insult to injury, they mispell my last name on their website. sigh.
I wrote what I thought was a fairly decent column and submitted it to their producers who said it was fine. Tuesday, despite my illness, I visited their studio in Hilversum to pre-record it.
On Friday morning when the show aired, I heard my own voice, but I did not recognize my words. They had completely edited my column! They changed the order around and deleted a long passage that I had considered to be the "heart" of what I was trying to say.
My initial reaction was to pitch a fit. But then (after a few hours) I realized that, on the whole, being upset that one of the country's leading radio news programs has edited your column is not such a bad problem to have.
If you speak Dutch and are so inclined, here is a link to 'my' column. Click on Deel 4, and my segment starts at 21:35.
Click here for Emma's edited column
oh, and to add insult to injury, they mispell my last name on their website. sigh.
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Thursday, January 01, 2009
And a very happy new year it will be!
I've just discovered that a museum in Holland is currently hosting the largest ever retrospective of the works of John William Waterhouse. I am over the moon!!! I can't wait to go. and I will blog all about it when I do. For now, enjoy some of his works...
my holiday season
I'm having a bad week.
Last Thursday, December 26, halfway through a fancy second day of Christmas dinner, I suddenly began to feel very sick. I tried to hold on so as not to offend my host, but I finally had no choice but to excuse myself from the table. I had a stomach flu. I'm sure you've all had this at least once in your life so I'll spare you the details.
I had to cancel a visit from my cousins that Sunday. I also called in sick to my work Monday and Tuesday. I did go in to work yesterday, but I felt so bad afterward that I had to skip the New Year's party I was supposed to attend last night. I watched fireworks from my bedroom window.
Luckily, I was armed with the convalescent's best friend: my new library membership (which cost a ridiculous amount of money, btw. I can't believe the Dutch government doesn't subsidize libraries better.) I have read two of those paperback murder mysteries that you buy in airports. I read them both straight through in about 5 hours each. It's the literary equivalent of eating potato chips. and just as bad for you. I'm now trying to cleanse my brain from the polution with C.S. Lewis' Selected Literary Essays.
I hope I can go to work tomorrow. oh well. Another day of being laid up and reading? I could do a lot worse.
Last Thursday, December 26, halfway through a fancy second day of Christmas dinner, I suddenly began to feel very sick. I tried to hold on so as not to offend my host, but I finally had no choice but to excuse myself from the table. I had a stomach flu. I'm sure you've all had this at least once in your life so I'll spare you the details.
I had to cancel a visit from my cousins that Sunday. I also called in sick to my work Monday and Tuesday. I did go in to work yesterday, but I felt so bad afterward that I had to skip the New Year's party I was supposed to attend last night. I watched fireworks from my bedroom window.
Luckily, I was armed with the convalescent's best friend: my new library membership (which cost a ridiculous amount of money, btw. I can't believe the Dutch government doesn't subsidize libraries better.) I have read two of those paperback murder mysteries that you buy in airports. I read them both straight through in about 5 hours each. It's the literary equivalent of eating potato chips. and just as bad for you. I'm now trying to cleanse my brain from the polution with C.S. Lewis' Selected Literary Essays.
I hope I can go to work tomorrow. oh well. Another day of being laid up and reading? I could do a lot worse.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Book review
If you're having trouble sleeping these days, I highly recommend "De Terugkeer van de Geschiedenis: De liberale democratie en het opkomst van het nationalisme" by Robert Kagan. It is sooo boring it will knock you out cold. I have only read (some of) the Dutch version, so I cannot guarantee that the English-language original "The Return of History" will have the same soporific effect. But somehow I suspect it would...
Friday, December 26, 2008
A quick thought
It occurred to me that my family and I are all in very, very different places on 25 December 2008 than we were on 25 December 2007. The road in between was anything but smooth, but my situation now is not just better than it was last year - it's better than I could have ever imagined last year.
God answers prayer.
God answers prayer.
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