Beautiful Chartres Labyrinth

Tao wisdom / Tao wijsheid

All colors together blind your eye.
All tones together deafen your ear.
All scents together spoil your taste.
Running and hurrying all the time makes you crazy.
Expensive things take you on the wrong path.

That´s why a wise person is guided by his feeling
and not by what he sees.
He chooses for the inner life, not the outer.

Alle kleuren tegelijk verblinden je oog.
Alle tonen tegelijk verdoven je oor.
Alle geuren tegelijk bederven je smaak.
Aldoor hollen en jachten, daar word je gek van.
Dure dingen brengen je op het verkeerde pad.

Daarom wordt een wijs mens geleid door zijn gevoel
en niet door wat hij ziet.
Hij kiest voor het innerlijk en niet voor het uiterlijk.

Always a good sight to visit

Walking on Beauty

We all share beauty. It strikes us indiscriminately.... There is no end to beauty for the person who is aware. Even the cracks between the sidewalk contain geometric patterns of amazing beauty. If we take pictures of them and blow up the photographs, we realize we walk on beauty every day, even when things seem ugly around us.
Matthew Fox in Creation Spirituality

3 of the 9 Photos that will be shown at the exhibition next week

Sandworks 2, copyright Flora van StekSandworks 4, copyright Flora van StekSandfaces, copyright Flora van Stek

Nieuwe foto expositie / New photo exhibition

RedBlue

RedBlue, computer drawing with Wacom pen in Corel Draw, copyright Flora van Stek, 2005

How happy is the little stone

How happy is the little stone
That rambles in the road alone,
And doesn't care about careers,
And exigencies never fears;
Whose coat of elemental brown
A passing universe put on;
And independent as the sun,
Associates or glows alone,
Fulfilling absolute decree
In casual simplicity.

Emily Dickinson

Bereken hoe rijk je bent / See how rich you are

Deze berekening brengt alles wel heel scherp in perspectief. Klik op bovenstaande titel en zie hoe rijk je al bent.

This calculation brings everything into a very sharp perspective. Click on the title above and see how rich you already are.

Nieuwe fototentoonstelling Alkmaar / New photo show Alkmaar

Vanaf zaterdag 10 september 2005 zijn 10 van mijn foto's te zien bij de Alkmaarse Praktijk voor Fysiotherapie, Oudegracht 287, in de binnenstad van Alkmaar.
Openingstijden: Open dag op zaterdag 10 september 2005, van 11 - 17 uur.
Maandag tot en met vrijdag van 8 - 17 uur en per afspraak, telefoon 072 5154163.
Seascape 2, Flora van Stek
From Saturday 10 September 2005 I have 10 of my photos shown at Alkmaarse Praktijk voor Fysiotherapie, Oudegracht 287 in the old city of Alkmaar.
Opening hours: Open day Saturday 10 September 2005, from 11 - 17.Monday till Friday 8 - 17 and by appointment, phone 072 5154163.



Sandbird, Flora van Stek

the blues blog

This weblog is about the wonderful music that's made in New Orleans and surroundings. The music of Fats Domino, Dr John, the Neville Brothers and many others. Fats Domino, who is 77 years old now, has been spotted in Baton Rouge, safe and sound.
the blues blog
Dit weblog gaat over de geweldige muziek die in New Orleans en omgeving gemaakt wordt. De muziek van Fats Domino, Dr John, de Neville Brothers en vele anderen. Fats Domino, die nu 77 jaar oud is, is gezien in Baton Rouge, veilig en wel.

Prison Art / Kunst van gevangenen

Stitched by Cyndi.
When searching for a nice prayer image I came upon this site where art from prisoners is sold.

Tijdens het zoeken naar een mooi gebedsplaatje kwam ik op deze site waar kunst van gevangenen wordt verkocht.

"We artists are indestructible; even in a prison, or in a concentration camp, I would be almighty in my own world of art, even if I had to paint my pictures with my wet tongue on the dusty floor of my cell."
Pablo Picasso

Thinking of New Orleans / Denkend aan New Orleans

Was watching CNN yesterday for a few hours, and felt utterly sad for the people of New Orleans in all of their despair and outrage. I hope today everyone of them will be helped. If I could pray, I would pray for them every hour of the day.

Keek een paar uur naar CNN gisteren en voelde me zo verdrietig over de mensen in New Orleans in al hun wanhoop en woede. Ik hoop dat vandaag iedereen geholpen zal worden. Als ik kon bidden, zou ik elk uur van de dag voor hen bidden.

Schrijven / writing / ecrire / schreiben

Left click on the picture to see it bigger. Klik met de linkerkant van je muis op het plaatje om het groter te bekijken.

I am doing the morning writing exercise from the book The Artist's Way van Julia Cameron. Every morning right after you awake, you write three pages about anything you want, without criticizing anything. It's meant to stimulate your creativity. Even when you don't know what to write about. This was my page 3 of this morning. I like the way it looks. It reminds me of my already old idea to make a book consisting of only handwritten chapters. A bit like books were made by monks in early centuries, but in my own handwriting.

Ik doe de ochtend schrijfoefening uit het boek The Artist's Way van Julia Cameron. Elke ochtend vlak nadat je wakker bent, schrijf je drie pagina's over wat je maar wilt, zonder het te bekritiseren. Het is bedoeld om je creativiteit te stimuleren. Zelfs als je niet weet waarover je moet schrijven. Dit was mijn pagina 3 vanmorgen. Ik vind het er mooi uitzien. Het doet me denken aan mijn al oude idee om een boek te maken dat alleen uit handgeschreven hoofdstukken bestaat. Een beetje zoals boeken werden gemaakt door monniken in vorige eeuwen, maar dan in mijn eigen handschrift.

In the Ned Stat top 1000

113 Flora van Stek (dit weblog)
191 Night Drawings
196 Photos & Flora van Stek

Death is not the end / De dood is niet het einde

My father was a very popular man but he wasn't much of a father. Still, when I saw him on his deathbed in the hospital, he had such peace around him and I forgave him for everything he hadn't been. How was that possible? What had his death accomplished that his life couldn't do? Was it because he looked like an innocent baby? Because he had gone back to the light? There must be something there that makes us new again. I want to feel that newness in this life, without having to die first. That's why I make drawings, photographs, paintings and poems. To feel new again, like a brand new beginning.

Mijn vader was een hele populaire man maar hij was niet echt een vader. Toch vergaf ik hem alles wat hij niet was geweest, toen ik hem op zijn doodsbed in het ziekenhuis zag liggen met zoveel vrede om hem heen. Hoe was dat mogelijk? Wat had zijn dood voor elkaar gebracht dat zijn leven niet kon? Was het omdat hij eruit zag als een onschuldige baby? Omdat hij terug naar het licht was? Er moet daar iets zijn wat ons weer nieuw maakt. Ik wil die nieuwheid in dit leven voelen, zonder dat ik eerst moet sterven. Daarom maak ik tekeningen, foto's, schilderijen en gedichten. Om me weer nieuw te voelen, als een brandnieuw begin.

God is where you take your energy

Copyright Patrick Henri, 2004

"Patrick's eyes hold a light that intrigues me, and when he graciously offered to speak with me the following day, I couldn't wait. We sat in his backyard gazebo, with a pitcher of ice water and a backdrop of homegrown, red tomatoes. "God is where you take your energy." Patrick calmly stated. With that statement, I knew the source of the light in his eyes. I put down my eager little pen and just listened."
Lisa Fox about the painter Patrick Henry in the Bayside Gazette, 2005, where she writes a weekly column. Read the whole story at her weblog http://cinnamontst.blogspot.com/

Exhibition: Waterline Gallery, in the town of Berlin, Maryland, USA.

These paintings remind me a little of my mother's paintings, although she paints less detailed.
Her paintings are to be seen at http://www.greetjevanstek.nl/

Correction of the Soul, an animated healing

A beautiful animation of the human body which guides you through a healing meditation. See for yourself if it makes any sense to you.

Een mooie animatie van het menselijk lichaam die je door een helende meditatie leidt. Doe het zelf om te zien of het wat voor je is.

I.M. Brother Roger of Taize

Lighting a candle for Brother Roger who was buried yesterday. Click on the I.M. Brother Roger title for the website of the Taize community in France which he started.
On the morning of 17 August, after Brother Roger’s death, the following prayer was read in the church:
“Christ of compassion, you enable us to be in communion with those who have gone before us, and who can remain so close to us. We confide into your hands our Brother Roger. He already contemplates the invisible. In his footsteps, you are preparing us to welcome a radiance of your brightness.”

Brandde een kaars voor Broeder Roger die gisteren werd begraven. Klik op de I.M. Brother Roger titel voor de website van de Taize gemeenschap in Frankrijk die hij heeft opgericht.
Op 17 augustus, de ochtend na de dood van broeder Roger, is in de kerk het volgende gebed uitgesproken:
“Christus vol ontferming, door U kunnen wij in gemeenschap zijn met hen die ons zijn voorgegaan. Zij blijven ons zo nabij. Wij vertrouwen onze broeder Roger toe aan Uw handen. Nu reeds aanschouwt hij het onzienlijke. In zijn voetspoor, bereidt U ons voor om een schittering van Uw licht te ontvangen.”

My two weblogs are neighbors today / Mijn twee weblogs zijn vandaag buren

Today my two weblogs are neighbors in the Artists Top 1000 of NedStat:

163 Flora van Stek
164 Night Drawings


Vandaag zijn mijn twee weblogs buren in de Kunstenaars Top 1000 van NedStat:

163 Flora van Stek
164 Night Drawings

Silence / Stilte

In the sweet territory of silence we touch the mystery. It's the place of reflection and contemplation, and it's the place where we can connect with the deep knowing, to the deep wisdom way.
Angeles Arrien quoted in The Millionth Circle by Jean Shinoda Bolen

In het aangename domein van de stilte raken we het mysterie aan. Het is de plaats van reflectie en contemplatie, en het is de plaats waar we contact kunnen maken met het diepe weten, met de diepzinnige weg van de wijsheid.
Angeles Arrien geciteerd uit The Millionth Circle door Jean Shinoda Bolen

Liquid Journey / Vloeibare reis

No, this is not the name of a new pop group or film you should see. It's the name of a website where you can see beautiful Flash animations. Not in the dynamic way people usely work with Flash, but quiet, very quiet. Almost as if beings from outer space live in these images. The sounds that go with the images, are just as mysterious, almost mystical. This work inspires me. Click on the title of this text to see for yourself what I am talking about. I hope you enjoy what you see.

Nee, dit is niet de naam van een nieuwe popgroep of film die je moet gaan zien. Het is de naam van een website waar je hele mooie Flash animaties kunt zien. Niet op de dynamische manier waarop er meestal met Flash gewerkt wordt, maar juist rustig, heel rustig. Bijna alsof wezens uit de ruimte deze beelden bevolken. De geluiden die bij de beelden te horen zijn, zijn net zo mysterieus, bijna mystiek. Dit werk inspireert me. Klik maar op de titel van deze tekst zodat je kunt zien waarover ik het heb. Ik hoop dat je geniet van wat je ziet.

I.M. Constant

Ik las net dat de schilder Constant Nieuwenhuijs vandaag overleden is op 85-jarige leeftijd. Ik was echt een fan van zijn laatste werk, waarin hij mooie tinten rood, roze en oranje gebruikte. Hierboven is een aquarel te zien die hij in 2001 heeft gemaakt. Ik herinner me dat ik met mijn vader bij hem thuis ben geweest, waar hij een enorme kooi vol apen hield in de huiskamer. Ik denk dat ik zo'n jaar of 10 was, dus rond 1963. Als je op 'I.M. Constant' klikt, verschijnt er een overzichtelijk artikel over zijn ontwikkeling als kunstenaar, met afbeeldingen van zijn werk.

I just read that the painter Constant Nieuwenhuijs died today at the age of 85. I was a real fan of his latest work, in which he used beautiful shades of red, pink and orange. Above you see a watercolor that he made in 2001. I remember that I visited his house with my father, where he kept an enormous cage full of monkeys in the living room. I think I was about 10 years old, around 1963 or so.

I.M. Marten Toonder

Vanavond zag ik op tv een interview met Marten Toonder uit 1992 door Adriaan van Dis. Bijzondere man~ Fijngevoelig, beschaafd, intelligent en erg geinteresseerd in het spirituele (een combinatie die zeldzaam is in Nederland) wat hij in Ierland terugvond. Hij stierf vandaag op 93-jarige leeftijd in zijn slaap. Moge hij omringd zijn door licht en liefde~~~ met zijn geliefde vrouw Phiny.
Als je op de titel 'I.M. Marten Toonder' klikt, kun je een interessant interview met Marten Toonder lezen, gemaakt door Wil Uitgeest en Bart Hommersen voor het tijdschrift Vruchtbare Aarde, dat ook een mooie website heeft, http://www.vruchtbareaarde.nl/, met veel informatie en artikelen online.

Tonight I saw an interview with Marten Toonder (a famous Dutch cartoonist) on tv by Adriaan van Dis (a Dutch author) from the year 1992. Special man~ Sensitive, civilized, intelligent and very interested in spiritual life (a combination not commonly found in the Netherlands) which he found back in Ireland. He died today in his sleep at the age of 93. May he be surrounded by light and love~~~ with his beloved wife Phiny.

E-cards van 11 van mijn foto's / E-cards of 11 my photos

Klik op de titel hierboven en je komt op de site van de online galerie Art Olive waar 11 van mijn foto's op te zien zijn. Elke foto kan ook verstuurd worden als e-card.

Click on the title above and you will arrive at the site of on line gallery Art Olive where 11 of my photos are to be seen. Each photo can be sent as e-card.

Searching for Beauty in Lines

Copyright Flora van Stek, 2005

Who is looking through my eyes? / Wie kijkt er eigenlijk door mijn ogen?

Who am I? Wie ben ik?

This philosophical question can be a continuous exercise to get enlightened in the end. Deze filosofische vraag kan een voortdurende oefening zijn om uiteindelijk verlicht te raken. By asking the question 'Who am I' the mind has less and less room to think of other things, and this makes that you start to live more and more in the present. Door het stellen van de vraag 'Wie ben ik?' heeft de geest steeds minder ruimte om aan andere dingen te denken, zodat je steeds meer in het heden gaat leven.
Is that true? Is dat waar?
I have never done it for a long period of time. Ik heb het nog nooit gedaan voor langere tijd.

What I find a beautiful question is: 'Who is actually looking through my eyes?' Wat ik een hele mooie vraag vind, is: 'Wie kijkt er eigenlijk door mijn ogen?'

Prayer for Victims of Terrorism / Gebed voor slachtoffers van terrorisme

Loving God, / Liefdevolle God,
Welcome into your arms the victims of violence and terrorism. / Verwelkom in uw armen de slachtoffers van geweld en terrorisme.
Comfort their families and all who grieve for them. / Troost hun familie en iedereen die om hen treurt.
Help us in our fear and uncertainty, / Help ons in onze angst en onzekerheid,
And bless us with the knowledge that we are secure in your love. En zegen ons met de wetenschap dat we veilig zijn in uw liefde.
Strengthen all those who work for peace, Geef kracht aan iedereen die voor vrede werkt,
And may the peace the world cannot give reign in our hearts. En moge de vrede die de wereld niet kan geven, in ons hart regeren.

-Anonymous

Een nieuwe schilderij/A new Painting

Kocht nieuwe acrylverf van de week. Cadmiumrood, kobaltblauw, cadmiumgeel, titaanwit en oxydzwart. Ik werk hier aan een schilderij van een klein meisje met staartje op de rug gezien. Het volgende gedicht gaat over haar.

Verhuizend meisje

Ze was pas drie en al een keer verhuisd
Als voorbode voor nog meer verhuizingen
Ingepakte dozen met boeken en spullen
Vormden geen mysterie voor haar

Nieuwe winkels, buren, kamers, mensen
Waren zoals ze waren en wenden snel
Ze konden maar beter niet al te leuk zijn
Dan was het extra moeilijk om te vertrekken

Bought new acrylic paint this week. Cadmium red, cobalt blue, cadmium yellow, titanium white and oxide black. I am working on a painting of a small girl with a pony tail, seen on the back. The following poem is about her.

Moving girl

She was only three and had moved already once
As a forebode to even more moves
Packed boxes with books and stuff
Were no mystery for her

New shops, neighbors, rooms and people
Were as they were and became routine soon
They had better not be too nice
Then it was extra hard to leave

De zon brandt in Holland/The sun is burning in Holland

Al een paar dagen is het tropisch warm in Nederland. Ik draag een korte broek en een t-shirt zonder mouwen en smeer elke morgen mijn blanke armen en benen in met een zonnebrandcreme om mijn huid te beschermen tegen verbranding.

For a few days now it is tropical hot in Holland. I am wearing short trousers and a t-shirt without sleeves and every morning I put on a suntan lotion on my white arms and legs to protect my skin against burning.

Writing in Dutch and English

I am going to write in Dutch and English. Dutch is my native language after all. I like writing in English, because I love this language and I like the idea that people all over the world can read what I write. But I would also like to get read by Dutch speakers and readers, since I live in the Netherlands. This is my home. So here we go...

The Essence of Buddhism

The foundation beliefs of Buddhism are the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. These were taught by the Buddha (a word which means The Enlightened One) about 2500 years ago. They are essentially the same through every sect and tradition of Buddhism. They are:

All life knows suffering. Nobody gets what they want out of life.
The cause of suffering is ignorance and clinging. Wanting it is the problem.
There is a way to end suffering. By learning not to want it.
This is the way to end suffering: The Eightfold Path.
Right Understanding Learning the nature of reality and the truth about life.
Right Aspiration Making the commitment to living in such a way that our suffering can end.
Right Effort Just Do It. No Excuses.
Right Speech Speaking the truth in a helpful and compassionate way.
Right Conduct Living a life consistent with our values.
Right Livelihood Earning a living in a way that doesn’t hurt others.
Right Mindfulness Recognizing the value of the moment; living where we are.
Right Concentration Expanding our consciousness through meditation.

Refuge for the Sceptical Buddhist

A mailing list for people who feel connected with Buddha, but are not members of a specific buddhist group.

A nice visual Zen site

QUESTIONS

by Norman Fischer

Why is this day different from yesterday
and why am I I and not
you or her or it?
Why does the pond ripple with
the wind and why does the dog
bark at nearly everything and why
is that annoying to me? Why is it
music moves me and why do I nearly
cry when someone's selfless for a moment
even in a movie? Why
was I born, why do I live another day,
where did I come from and where
am I going? Why do flies
appear suddenly from nowhere
and what do flies think about,
or grasshoppers, or fish, say
trout, large ones, that hover
gracefully, facing upstream, and why is it
the water ouzel twitches like that
or for that matter what about the
several things in this world that don't
speak or see or decide or taste anything
like bacteria, fidoplankton, amoeba, mites?
What's the measure of this world?
Is small smaller than large or
Is it larger and is there any small or large
outside mathematics and does it make any difference
and to whom? You? Me? What
does language do after all? is it
another organ, like a nose? And did
everything that's ever happened happen by chance
or is there a design?
What's a design anyway?
Is there anything but design?
Can anyone anyway ask a single serious
meaningful question?
Can I?

Silence

(...)Mobile phones make us incessantly - often pointlessly - available. (How would Wordsworth have got on wandering lonely as a cloud with a mobile ringing in his pocket?) (...)

Taken from an article in The Observer. You can read the whole article 'Silence is Golden' when you click on the title of this post.

Praise and Blame

I praise loudly; I blame softly.

-- Catherine the Second (1729-1796) Russian Empress

We are liquid...

Such a beautiful text this is:

"We are liquid. It’s tempting to think of ourselves as more of a solid: the images abound, after all, which push us towards that state as an ideal. “Nerves of steel,” “solid as a rock,” “iron man” and the like. But that is not who we are, even though we may draw as much strength from stones as from water.

Stones do have great lessons to give, and I have learned much from their silent ways. Still, it’s not granite and gravel flowing through our veins, and to have a heart of stone is a cliché of insult, not ideal. No, we are liquid, as much as a glass of water is, as malleable and also as fragile—as prone to apparent disappearance. We flow through the world, at our best. At our highest we are closest to being a river."

(read on by clicking the title)

No, I don't get sponsored!

A funny game with digits... Click on the title and see for yourself.

Gate Gate Paramgate Parasamgate Bodhi Swaha

The Tibetans have a phrase, Lhag Thong, to describe a state that sees beyond appearances, a state they call "transcendent insight." The famous Sanskrit mantra gate, gate, paramgate, parasamgate, Bodhi, Swaha honors this transcendent state. "Oh wisdom that sees beyond, beyond even the concept of beyond, to thee homage." Enlightenment is this state of perception that sees beyond the limitations of our own conditioning, our memories, ghost feelings, thoughts, beliefs and the conflicts they create.

We might think of enlightenment as a "reset-button," one that evaporates the conflicts and confusion created by our normal way of seeing. Hit the switch and the body/mind instantly "reaches beyond" the confusion it creates. And in this original state we see and respond to the world exactly as it is. Nice idea. Now where is the button?

Ideal Job Test

I am always fond of doing tests on the internet, so when I found this Ideal Job Test, I filled in all the questions. Here are the results:

Your Strongest Career Skill is:

Intuitional -- seeing the big picture

Utilizing your strongest career skill allows you to feel involved with your work and satisfied that you are operating "on all cylinders." Your ideal job is one that utilizes your strengths, gives meaning and value to your best abilities and avoids exploiting your weaknesses.

Your Weakest Career Skill is:

Innovative -- initiating and promoting ideas

A job that requires you to utilize your weakest career skill will lead to immediate job dissatisfaction. Not only will you have difficulty performing certain tasks, but you will find it hard to get involved in your work and will feel "underutilized" -- your strengths are not being emphasized. Avoid jobs that require the use of your weakest career skill.

Art Games

Spring Shower

Thought and Humor Newspaper On Line

Lovingkindness

This is an inspiring story about lovingkindness, considered one of the treasures in buddhism.

http://www.gratefulness.org/readings/jh_lovingkindness.htm

Textures, piano based internet radio, click here

Very relaxing music on the Accuradio.com website. New age, gitar, acoustic, piano etc.

Barbara and Flora appear in Living Magazine 'Con Amore'

My sister Barbara and I will appear in the April/May issue of Living, about our Count Your Blessings book and the Count Your Blessings workshops Barbara will be giving. http://www.countyourblessings.nl/informatie.htm
The magazine will be in the shops on the 15th of April.

Inner and Outer Wealth

Precious Gift

A wise woman who was traveling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream.The next day she met another traveler who was hungry, and the wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation.

The traveler left rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. But, a few days later, he came back to return the stone to the wise woman. "I've been thinking," he said. "I know how valuable this stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me this stone."

Sometimes it's not the wealth you have but what's inside you that others need.

Unknown author

Goose person

copyright 2005 Flora Van Stek

A single sunbeam is enough to drive away many shadows.
-St. Francis of Assisi

The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Beautiful photos of The Gates

Last night I chatted with my friend Pat Kriss from New York City, who visited The Gates yesterday, the last day of this colorful project. She made a series of beautiful photos which you can see here.

This is the website of Christo and Jeanne Claude, the artists who created The Gates.

http://christojeanneclaude.net/tg.html

Sands of Time Painting

Copyright Greetje van Stek, 2005
My 76 year old mother painted this recently and added my Sands of Time Poem to it.

Together

Saw a beautiful, heartfelt Chinese movie on tv yesterday, called Together. About a young boy who played the violin with his whole heart, as a way to stay close to his mother who disappeared when he was a baby. The movie reminded me of that other music film called The Red Violin. What a gift such movies! What a relief to see beauty and love expressed once in a while, in eye pleasing colors and compositions.
Beauty and love, nothing else. There is so much need for it in this strange and violent world.

Music by Muso

Central Park, The Gates in Photos

Harry Potter's Creator Has an Exciting Website

Homeland Security? Passport Art in the US of A

http://www.sabotage.at/allgemein/february-9-2005


This story reminds me of my own adventure with Detroit immigration, back in May 2001, when the service was still called the INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service). Since 2003 it is part of the Department for Homeland Security.

Nothing of my stuff was confiscated, as the fake passports in the link above. No, I was deported from the USA. Sent back to Holland in about 6 hours on a ticket the INS officers kindly arranged for me. They even drove me all the way to the plane, gave my passport to the stewardess on duty, who politely walked me to my seat. A real VIP treatment!

Why?

The official reason was that I lacked a working visa to translate an English book into Dutch, which was an assignment from a Dutch publisher. I thought I could easily do this, since translating from English to Dutch doesnt seem to pose a threat to the unemployed in the USA. The INS officials however were touchingly concerned with their fellow Americans without jobs and, after interrogating me for hours, accompanied me and my luggage to one of their cars, where I had to sit behind bars at the back seat. I could hardly talk from shock all the way back home, which is 9 hours by plane, and I got totally lost at the airport of Schiphol, so I had to call a girlfriend to pick me up. In pieces.

In the report of the INS I was called an alien, which they call all foreigners in the USA, but I always have associations with a being from outer space when I hear this word.

It took me months to recover from this 'patriotic service' and whenever I read about strange immigration measures, I see those uniformed officers again, and how they treat the aliens who want to visit their precious 'homeland'.

Exhibition in Leiden Five More Days To Go

Chris Moran: Colour Theory and Psychology

Piano piano

Is this about piano music or poetry? Or both?

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

— Marcel Proust

Nice Gallery

The Sun and The Beach

Yesterday I went to the beach again. Hadn't been there in a while, due to bad, cold, rainy weather. The sun was shining and there was a promise of spring in the air. It was also a new moon, good for new beginnings. So I went by bus to Egmond aan Zee, a seaside resort 25 minutes away from Alkmaar.
On the beach near the sea were lots of interesting small puddles of water surrounded by fascinating sand structures. Exactly what I find so intriguing to photograph. Sometimes you see profiles of people or animals in the sand. Three years ago I made my first photograph like that and called it 'Sand kisses'. I will show it here. Some people thought the picture was made in the Kalahari desert! While it was just around the corner where I lived at that time, on the beach of Camperduin, between Schoorl and the Hontsbossche Zeewering/Petten.

Cleaning closets

http://www.magicalblend.com/library/Magical_Column/magical_column2004/Dec03.html

Happy New Year To All!

“In every adult there lurks a child–an eternal child, something that is always becoming, is never completed, and calls for unceasing care, attention, and education. That is the part of the human personality which wants to develop and become whole.”

C. G. Jung