Two Reasons a Car Looks More and More Attractive

1. It took us the same amount of time to take public transportation from the Rotterdam Airport to our apartment as it took our friend to go through security, board the plane, and fly from Rotterdam to London. We arrived home at the same time she landed.
2. A 90-minute bike ride in the cold rain for a doctor's appointment that took 30 minutes.

Woe are we.

What's for Dinner?

Literally.

Tonight, before cooking the white fish with a very long Dutch name we purchased at the store earlier this week, Dan sat down at the computer. After some web-searching, clicking and typing, he announced, "It's Cod!"

None Seen on Last Trip to Amsterdam

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/02/03/D8FHR5I00.html

Scroll down...

...to February 11 for my latest post.

On the Topic of Packaging

Dr. Oetker Ristorante Pizza certainly does get around. I'm getting used to packaging with multiple languages on it - I'm particularly fond of the stuff we bought in Moldova that had Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian, and other very Eastern European languages on it.

But Dr. Oetker's takes the prize. The directions are in 11 languages: German, Italian, French, Dutch, English, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish, and Portuguese. That covers Western Europe, eh?

Magnifying glass not included.

Have Yet to Master the Metric System

Not that it would be that hard...we're just lazy!

But there are times when it would pay off. Like now.

We bought garbage bags, but our mainstay brand was out of stock. So, we bought "Container Hoezen". 10 stuks. 119 x 134 cm. Inhoud 240 liter.

Nevermind that we could have at least roughly estimated that 119 x 134 cm is about 4 FEET by 4.5 FEET. And the liters? Well, since 240 liters does not compute, we figured that "Inhoud 240 liters" was for all 10 stuks. So each bag was 24 liters. Perfect.

Or not. We now have ten of the biggest, largest, hugest garbage bags known to man. Bigger than leaf bags. Bigger than our garbage cans. And we got a big laugh out of it.

Dan says, "Well, they'll come in handy we we move." I suppose they will.

Expat Milestones?

Does it mean I've come of age in Holland if my friends here now include me on their e-mail distributions...but write them in Dutch?

TAG

I'm It...where is the safety???

Four jobs I've had:
1. Hot Dog girl at Hot Dogs 'n' More...this is where I learned to make a Chicago dog and picked up stalkers who sent me roses.
2. B. Dalton bookseller...loved this job. Much better than my 3 months with hot dogs and nachos at the hot dog stand (although the MTU Dungeon and Dragon fans were a bit scary). And Dad would buy me ice cream from across the way whenever he picked me up after work.
3. Liner and analyst for a crisis center - at the service of runaway teens and poured over their stats to try to get more funding
4. Data analyst at a tire recycling plant. My first paycheck bounced!

My career got much better after these jobs! (And now it has culminated in homewifery in the Netherlands.)

Four movies I can watch over and over:
1. Princess Bride. Mainly because I'm fascinated that Dan can nearly recite the entire movie verbatim.
2. Fellowship of the Ring
3. Two Towers
4. Return of the King

Can I confess? These are the four DVDs we had in Holland prior to Christmas, and we WILL get their money's worth out of them. Actually, I normally hate watching movies twice.

Four places I've lived:
1. Hancock, Michigan















2. Valparaiso, Indiana

3. Birmingham, Alabama




4. Rotterdam, Netherlands




Four TV shows I love:
1. Any Law and Order that I haven't seen
2. Simpsons
3. Well, good American TV is such a distant memory...I don't know.

Four places I've vacationed:
1. MAUI!!!



2. Romania



3. The Smokies



4. Rotterdam...or maybe this whole year just feels like a vacation.

Four of my favorite dishes:
1. Kippensoep
2. Mostaccioli and Ham
3. Spaghetti
4. Jiao Zis - with lots of vinegar

Four sites I visit daily:
1. www.msn.com
2. my webmail site
3. www.nbcolympics.com these days
4. a mix of 3 or 4 other blog sites

Four places I would rather be right now:
1. Torino, of course
2. Anywhere with family or old friends
3. MAUI!!!
4. A really good restaurant - no Dutch food, please

Four bloggers I am tagging:
1. What? Oh, recess is over? Shucks...

Sedative Not Needed

There were some moments of panic, I admit. I lost count as to how many times I turned on Eurosport, hoping to NOT see animated butterflies and one-eyed birds fluttering across my screen. (Hint: it's not Eurosport anymore, cable company...stop telling me it is or give it back.)

And I couldn't find certainty of coverage anywhere as I browsed our 31 channels and faithfully checked the not-so-accurate TV Gids. The Dutch media have a lot to learn about pre-event hype, I suppose.

But upon my return home yesterday evening, there it was...on 2 channels! No English coverage, but between the Dutch and German channels, I can get moving pictures of it all!

Coverage of what you ask? The Olympics, of course!

From the Consular's Office

Like good American expats, we are registered on the Secretary of State's database for Americans living abroad. Who knows what "they" are doing with this information, but, quite frankly, I like being informed of things of interest to Americans that are happening around the country in which I live. I mean, Dan would have never found out about the 4th of July party in Moldova if it weren't for the newsletter from the Moldovan embassy! I take it the grilled chicken was something to try! (I was swimming and sauna-ing with the Finnish president around this time.)

So we get newsletters from time to time from the office. Recent ones include tidbits of info like the fact an IRS representative will be available to assist us with tax concerns. Problem is, s/he's not available till the end of March. By golly, what if we want our refund sooner than that?

And here is the most recent. I appreciate the warning that intended peacefulness does not equate to actual peacefulness.

"On the afternoon of Saturday, February 11, a demonstration against the cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohamed will be held near Dam Square in Amsterdam. Local authorities expect the demonstration to be peaceful. We wish to remind American citizens that even demonstrations intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and possibly escalate into violence. As a security precaution, we recommend that you avoid this area the day of the demonstration.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov/, where the current Worldwide Cautions, Public Announcements, and Travel Warnings can be found. Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S., or, for callers outside the U.S. and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-317-472-2328. These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern
Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).

The U.S. Consulate General in Amsterdam is located at Museumplein 19, tel. (020) 575-5309. The after-hours emergency telephone number is (070) 310-2209."

I wonder if dooce knows about this...

XL = Xtra Late

Presently, I am watching Superbowl XL - live. Dan and I decided to continue our jet lag non-recovery and stay up for the silly game (ok, ok, I admit it - we were thrilled to see it was going to be broadcast). However, it's just not the same at 2:30 a.m. on Dutch TV:
-"Het is goede!" (pronounced 'het iz hoot') for every pass, touchdown, field goal, and extra point doesn't have the same ring to it.
-Nor does "Dit is een uitstekend runningback!"
-Berlinerbollen shouldn't qualify as Superbowl party food.
-No American Superbowl commercials, but rather just one repetitive "Amsterdam Admirals World Bowl kampions" ad
-Mick Jagger baring his midriff at this time of night