Amanda Blog and Kiss

Nearly every day I open up my blog to write a post, and nearly every day life gets in the way before I can even start.

Between work and being social, there are just not enough hours in the day. But I grabbed a snippet of time this morning as I sit with my coffee on my balcony, just so I could reconnect with my blog.

Hello, old friend. I miss you.

Starting in about ten minutes the rest of my day is packed to the gills, so I’m going to use this ten minutes to pause, and just breathe.

So apparently my friend has another friend from New Jersey, some guy named Craig. 

I’m pretty sure I staked the claim of being anyone in Amsterdam’s ‘Crazy Cool Funny Friend from New Jersey’ when I moved here (ok I am taking liberties with the first part of that title, I know).  And then here comes this Craig fella, sharing the role without even asking!  I don’t know anyone else from New Jersey here in Amsterdam, and then all of a sudden there’s a Craig, and this Craig is also friends with my friend?  And I don’t know him?

Hmm. 

Friend: Craig came by after you left and was way more fun than you

Me: Is craig the jersey guy???

Friend: Yes

Me: He’s a dead man.

Friend: I’ll let him know.

Well you know what, Craig?  This town’s not big enough for the both of us.  Go find your own friends.

…Or maybe, just maybe, he can help me deflect all of the ‘Jersey Shore’, ‘Sopranos’, and “HEY YOU’RE FROM JOISEY?!?!?!” comments that I get on the regular.

Safety in numbers?

It was a pretty eventful weekend on several levels.

So here goes:

- It was Queen’s Day this past weekend.  You know the story: lots of people, lots of orange, lots of mean drunk Dutch people, but also lots of friendly fun ones too!  So many other bloggers have already given their 2 cents about Queen’s Day with lots of photos, so I’ll leave it at that.

- Lola turned 6 years old!  Where does the time fly?  I remember when she was just a smudge of a puppy.

In love with a smudge.

That was the summer of 2004, and now here she is, big and hairy and 6 years old.  This is the longest relationship I’ve ever had.

42 years old in dog years

- I had an unexpected guest in the form of Petra Jordan, a long-time friend from my days in Brussels.  Several friends from far away were in town this weekend for Queen’s Day, but Petra was the only one that I actually got to meet up with.  You just can’t make plans on Queen’s Day weekend and expect them to come to fruition, end of story.  But I always have a good time when Petra is in town, and it was good to see her again.  This week she heads into the studio to record her album, so keep an eye on her site or her facebook!

My favorite song of her’s has always been ‘Home’, because I always thought it would be a great summer festival song.  Also because I know the story behind the lyrics, and the subsequent outcome.  I can’t wait to hear her singing it one day during one of Europe’s music festivals!

- I snuck into The Next Web Conference and for an hour or so acted like I belonged there.  I listened to a talk by Tim Ferriss, author of ‘The 4 Hour Work Week“.  Tim was also staying at Hotel V for the weekend.  He’s a nice guy, I’m totally not surprised that he’s a successful business guru.

- I drank a lot.  No surprise there then!  It was fun, but I think it’s time to rein it in a bit.  Have to focus on some other things for awhile, and drinking tends to steer me away from those things.

- I also let the crazy out one night.  In the most horribly vicious way that I could muster.  And I woke up the next day absolutely disgusted with my behaviour.  Because in my drunken stupor, I set out to cause pain, and cause pain I did.  But when I woke up the next day I realized that I had hurt myself just as much, and I haven’t felt right since.  The fact that I was forgiven just kind of makes it worse.  I have too many unresolved emotions floating around inside that are absolutely killing me, so it’s time to focus on ridding myself of the negativity so I can be happy and carefree again.

- Oh and I also met a Cosmic Buddha Jigolo!  He was……interesting?  Definitely an abstract thinker, to put it mildly.  I’m not sure if I believed him when he said that he was a jigolo, but his story was so detailed and out there, that I can’t help thinking that he maybe possibly could have been essentially a male escort.  Bizarre.

He told me to pose in my most Buddha-like pose, and then took this photo and proceeded to tell me that he costs €1,300 per day.  A-w-k-w-a-r-d.

Trying to keep a straight face at that insane price tag.

- And a quick mention, although my friends are already sick of hearing about it:  I got this beauty and haven’t been able to stop petting it since.  I have finally joined 2010!  Huzzah!  My, it’s awfully bright and sunny here!

Dear Rain,

You’re cramping my style, yo.

When you come to town, the following happens:

• I cannot bike everywhere, so have to take the tram (more money).
• I cannot drink on terraces without getting wet, nor can I breakfast on my balcony.

The wet view from my balcony, where I cannot breakfast. WOE IS MY LIFE!

• My social life becomes less exciting.
• My hair becomes entirely too exciting:

Straight bangs I said! STRAIGHT! (Also: 'That's what she said.' Snicker.)

• My dogs become the 2 biggest pussy……cats you’ve ever met and refuse to go for a walk if they feel even one drop of rain on their heads.
• If I do manage to coax them out, they end up soaked and smelly, and covered in half the mud from Vondelpark, which ends up on my floor.
• My fake-leather shoes take a beating, and my feet get wet and cold (all in the name of compassion for animals but still.  STILL!  I don’t like cold feets!)

In short, Rain, you piss on my parade.

Please stop now.  K, Thanks!

Sincerely,

Amanda Wet and Soaked

I am sitting in a pub and blogging on my phone.

What’s next- moving sidewalks and cars that run on electricity?

Yes, I am late to the game (as always) but that doesn’t make it any less exciting for me.