On this day in history

It may seem like any other Tuesday and you may know that on this day in . . .

1887 Thomas Edison patented his movie camera

1895 1st pro football game was played

1920 Belgium started paying old age pensions

1954 the U.S. Census Bureau was formed

1972 Olga Korbut won an Olympic gold medal

1974 The Partridge Family TV show ended

1997 Princess Diana died in a car crash

. . . but you may not know that the most important thing that happened on this day is . . . Randi was born!

Happy Birthday, Randi!

The Kerk and the Kerkhof

On our last trip to Brussels we drove around for a while and naturally ended up on the bad side of town. It's a rule that when you drive around a city long enough you will eventually cross the tracks. And we did.

As luck would have it though, there was a really beautiful church being restored so we stopped to check it out.

Church of Our Lady of Laeken

Denys is the company apparently hired to do the restoration.

Beliris is a collaboration between the federal government of Belgium

and the city of Brussels for improvements to Brussels as the capital of Europe.

It isn't even that old by European standards, but this thing even has trees growing out of it.

They obviously restored the front first.

As interesting as the church was the cemetery behind it.

The gravesites were elaborate and beautiful and also in terrible condition.

The site was huge and it went on forever,

but it looked like one day everyone just quit caring for it.

Many of the stones had dates around this time period.

Not that old, really.

I must give Ross credit for noticing this statue.

It is a cast of "The Thinker" by Rodin.

The original is in Paris, but there are several casts around the world.

This is the only one in Belgium.

Email hacker

I consider myself pretty computer literate for a person of my age. After all, there were no computers at my high school. Furthermore, there were no computers at my college. Unless you count the one in Wyly Tower basement that would take up your garage today. So, given that, and the fact I was primarily a stay-at-home-mom, I know enough to get around on the internet and an Excel spreadsheet.

Having said that, it is also becoming clearer and clearer just how fast I'm getting behind! Recently, everyone in my email address book received an email. From me. With a link to a Canadian drug company. Pushing Viagra.

Needless to say I was horrified, but more than that, I had no way to know how it happened or worse, how to keep it from happening again. Frankly, I still don't. Even after googling it and reading all I could about it. Seems changing my password is the only thing that might make a difference. Which means only one thing. Someone figured out my password.

Well, if you think that's difficult, think again. One way is when your email has been left idle, it automatically logs out. When you decide to re-access your email, you are asked to log in again. In this re-login screen, what is intended to be extra security may really be a password thief and your password has now secretly been sent to them. There's even software for stealing passwords.

And here's the worst part, there's no fool-proof way to protect against it. So I will surely be careful how often I type my password, but as you know, using the internet has risks.

But we're all willing to take them. So don't be surprised when one day all your friends get the exact same email from "you".

And now changing the subject completely.

Today is Randi and Josh's 5th anniversary. On this day in 2005, we had the nicest ceremony and reception in Burkhalter Chapel. Randi was the most relaxed and beautiful bride I've ever seen and the chapel was packed with true friends and family.

Happy Anniversary!

Antique Market

You may remember a recent post on the city of Tongeren. Well, it's not only the oldest city in Belgium, it's also famous for its antique market on Sundays. So, we went back on a Sunday.

This is looking down from that ancient wall I mentioned in my last post on Tongeren.

This is me taking a picture as close to the edge as I thought was safe. This is the definition of personal responsibility. Notice there's no fence, no guardrail, no danger sign . . . you're on your own and frankly, it was pretty obvious to me that if I walked any closer, I just might fall to my death. I guess I really didn't need a danger sign or guardrail.

They even use the parking garages for display booths.

Really nice when it rains.

And it rains. A lot.

So, I didn't purchase anything even though I needed that stuffed boar's head. I still enjoyed looking around and I'd like to go back for more reasons than one. This bakery has the best speculoos cookies I've ever eaten :)

According to the internet, Tongeren has the 2nd largest antique market in Europe. So, I searched for the largest antique market in Europe and it appears to be in Lille, France. That's only 2 hours from here and as luck would have it, it's the first weekend of September.

That happens to be the same weekend as the Brussels Beer Weekend so we may have to forego a day of beer in favor of the antique market in Lille. Maybe.

The Moderator

You know how most laws are written for the few who don't seem to know right from wrong? Sometimes even feel like the rest of us suffer for the few? Often times the rest of us acquiesce for the few.

Like some of you, I am now moderating the comments on my blog. Not because I want to, but because I consistently (almost daily) get a comment in Chinese. Now, don't get me wrong. I like the Chinese. I have no problem with Asians in general. Most of the comments (once translated) are just stupid nonsense, but some are not nice.

So, as a result of the Chinese commenter, I now wait for an email to let me know someone has posted a comment and as soon as I can, I "moderate" it and publish it. If it's in any language, but Chinese :~|

You would think there would be a way to block this person/entity from being allowed to post on my blog, but instead, I must monitor the other 99% of my comments because of this one.

It's not a big thing and I LOVE comments, it just makes me think of the bigger picture and how often the majority pay the price for what the minority does.

But there are two sides to that coin. And another post . . .

Water, water everywhere

If you remember anything from high school or college English, you can probably finish this quote. It's not Shakespeare either.

After a few months in Jefferson, Texas, I began working for a non-profit organization called Jeffersonian Institute/Cypress Valley Education Center. I use that term "working" loosely because after several months, I never actually got paid. I really never thought I would get paid, but I did think I could make a difference. Turned out, even that was impossible, but that's a whole other story. And I should probably leave it at that.

Anyway, there was a guy named Gary who also "worked" for this non-profit and he and I had quite a few conversations and one time I brought up the subject of the city's tap water. Jim noticed our water was a bit yellow one morning and told me I might not want to drink it. I wish I had the photo I took of that tap water, but alas it is on the computer in Jefferson. So just imagine light-colored urine. That's it.

So I was telling Gary about it and showed him the photo of our water. He said to me "You don't drink the tap water do you?". To which I replied "Well, I usually buy bottled water to drink, but I do use it to make coffee, cook pasta, and fill the dog's bowl.". To which he replied back "You don't drink the tap water in Jefferson.".

Oh, that would have been good information several months ago when we arrived in Jefferson. Needless to say, we began to purchase bottled water exclusively. Now, I won't say the water in Jefferson will kill you, but even the official water quality report indicated some room for improvement.

I digress for a moment because the subject of bottled water always reminds me of a sketch by Jim Gaffigan (comedian) where he says the French probably got together and said "How dumb do I think the Americans are? I bet you we could sell those idiots water."

So back to Jefferson. It may be that the tap water in Jefferson is about as good as the bottled water I was buying at Brookshires. The other day, Ross was reading from an infographic he saw online about tap water vs bottled water.

The FDA regulates bottled water and the EPA regulates tap water and it may or may not surprise you, but their regulations are a bit different.

Presented by Online Education

So, maybe I need to get that Brita filter back out.

Water, water every where

And all the boards did shrink;

Water, water every where

Nor any drop to drink.

~from Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Jokes.com
Jim Gaffigan - Bottled Water
comedians.comedycentral.com

Een jaar in het leven

A year in the life.

Yep, een jaar geleden, ben ik verhuisd naar Belgie.

Yep, one year ago today, I moved to Belgium.

Ik had geen verwachtingen, dus ik kan niet zeggen dat het al beter of slechter dan ik had verwacht.

I had no expectations so I can't say it's been better or worse than I expected.

Het is geen Amerikaan en ik ben nog steeds en Amerikaan in Belgie.

It's not America and I'm still an American in Belgium.

Ik kan niet zeggen dat het voor iedereen, maar ik kan zeggen dat het een goede ervaring voor ons geweest.

I can't say it's for everyone, but I can say it has been a good experience for us.

Ik mis onze familie.

I do miss our family.

Een heleboel.

A lot.

Net als alle andere ervaringen, heeft ons leven veranderd en we zijn beter af.

Like all experiences, it has changed our lives and we are better for it.

Ik weet niet hoe lang we hier zullen worden en we hebben nooit geprobeerd om te ver vooruit te plannen.

I don't know how long we will be here and we have never tried to plan too far ahead.

We hebben altijd gedacht dat het beste om te genieten van waar je bent. Nu.

We've always thought it best to enjoy where you are. Now.

De toekomst lijkt altijd vanzelf.

The future seems to always take care of itself.

Ik geniet van enige structuur in mijn leven, maar ik heb geleerd flexibel te zijn ik sterk aanbevelen.

I enjoy some structure in my life, but I have learned to be flexible and I highly recommend it.

Deze blog heeft me geholpen om het allemaal opnemen en misschien vermaakt en een paar verlichte.

This blog has helped me record it all and perhaps entertained and enlightened a few.

Ik zal waarschijnlijk nooit een deskundige op statistieken.

I will probably never be an expert on metrics.

Wie weet als ik ooit zal kunnen stoppen met het gebruik van Google Translate.

Who knows if I will ever be able to quit using Google Translate.

Maar ik kan zeker zegen dat hoe lang we hier zijn, zou ik niet een ding te veranderen.

But I can surely say that however long we are here, I would do it again.

Het is niet voor iedereen en ik mis onze familie. Een heleboel.

It's not for everyone and I do miss our family. A lot.

Dus, om de toekomst. Wat en waar dat ook moge zijn.

So, to the future. Whatever and wherever that may be.

I've always said . . . You can be happy or unhappy wherever you are.

Beer Weekend

Jim stumbled upon an event called Beer Weekend while surfing the net. It's in Brussels. Naturally, we added this to our calendar. How could we not?

With 50 breweries from small to large, Jim figured we better go for all three days since it would be hard to taste all these beers in one day. Check out this list of breweries that will be there. And all the beers that will be on draft.

I agree. It would be foolish to do this all in one day.

So . . . Ross lives in Leuven. Only a short train ride from Brussels. Hmmm. We could spend the night in Leuven, ride the train . . .

It begins on a Friday evening with a celebration of St. Arnould, Patron Saint of Brewers. I'm serious. There is a patron saint for this.

Those Catholics. What will they think of next?

I will let you know how it goes. Not the Catholic thing, the Beer Weekend, of course.

And, BTW, it's my son-in-law's birthday. Now, he would enjoy this Beer Weekend. Maybe next year!

Happy Birthday, Josh!

Bloementapijt

In mid-August, the Grand Place in Brussels is transformed into a bloementapijt or flower carpet about as long as a football field.

The plan begins often a year in advance when a theme is chosen - like the commemoration of a great event.

Officially, the first flower carpet was created in 1971 by a landscape architect looking for a way to promote his beloved begonias.

The begonia is the main component chosen for its beauty, vivid colors, and durability. Did you know that Belgium is recognized as the world's largest producer of begonias? Eighty percent of the total production of begonias, cultivated almost exclusively in Gent since 1860, is exported, with the U.S. being one of the best customers.

Unfortunately, I was unaware of the Gent Flower Show held every 5 years in April and 2010 was the year and we missed it! Here's a picture I found online of the previous one. It does look like quite a show.

Fortunately I did know about the Bloementapijt in Brussels!

I found this next photo online and figured it might be the best one I'd get since I didn't figure we'd be able to get so close.

We were actually able to walk right up to it and even went up in the City Hall to get a bird's eye view.

These two photos are of the flower carpet we got to see.

The 2010 theme is in honor of the European Union presidency. In addition to saints, emblems, and Gothic architecture, you can see the EU logo beside the fountain in the center.

I'm glad we got to see it and no doubt a lot of work went into making it.

Do it Yourself

On one our Sunday drives, we saw a sign for a castle and drove down a few country roads to find it.

Rood Kasteel

(Red Castle)

It had a nice courtyard with restaurant so we stayed for a drink.

Beside the castle was what appeared to be a barn or storage of some sort.

There were gates, and corbels, and doors and windows, and stones, and . . .

All I could think was it had all the makings of a castle that you could build yourself.

Jim even said "kinda makes me wish we were a little younger".

We are do-it-yourselfers, but a castle may be a bit lofty, even for us.

We swore that picket fence in Jefferson was our last "project".

I was amazed and just couldn't stop taking pictures.

We asked our waiter (back at the castle courtyard) if someone was going to live there and he said yes.

Can you imagine?!

The beginnings of a modern kitchen.

Maybe the biggest vase I've ever seen.

As I mentioned, this castle was out in the middle of nowhere and as we drove along we saw corn, wheat, apples, and this (pictured above).

Turns out it was this!

I had never seen carrots growing in the field.

Japanese Tuin

There are very few tourist attractions in Hasselt, but one of them is a Japanese Garden. It's usually only open during the day, but one night this week it was open in the evening.

It's the largest of its kind in Europe and is based on 17th century Japanese tea gardens.

There were koi as big as catfish and I know why. You can purchase food for them at the gate and I think we may be the only people who didn't buy any.

Despite translating the guide, I still don't know what this is.

Appears to be a really small shrine?

The garden also has 250 Japanese cherry trees so I hope to go back in the Spring to see them in bloom.

Incidentally

Mosselen (aka mussels) are very popular here this time of year. Every restaurant advertises that the "mosselen have arrived". I tried them last year when the season rolled around, but the texture is a bit like oysters and well, that's that. Jim, however, likes them and he decided to try his hand at cooking them at home. They come in a package of about 50 or 60 count. He was pleased with the results and ate all but 3 so they must have been good.

You've heard of the black sheep. Here it is.

We had dinner with our neighbors recently and this was the appetizer.

Yeah, that's escargot and we all ate it. They kinda remind me of crawfish.

I can say it was pretty good, but I can't say I want to eat it again.

We had dinner in Brussels a few weeks ago and this was the "special".

A bargain at only € 18.50 (and BTW, that's ~$24).

It is just a cheeseburger.

This was on a windowsill outside a store in Rothenburg, Germany.

Danke.

I like everything pretty simple.

This pillow pattern is a stretch for me, but at least it's still black and white.

My bath towels are white.

I always buy paper napkins and paper towels in white.

Solid white.

No stupid pictures of grapes or chili peppers.

So you can imagine my dismay when I got home with this.

And I couldn't just buy the 6 roll pack.

No, I had to buy the econo pack.

But you can see how it was cleverly disguised in this blue packaging.

No one buys toilet paper with blue puppies by choice.

When Frazier was visiting, he noticed this open space in the park being plowed up.

All I could think was that it would soon become a parking lot.

You know, "they paved paradise and put up a parking lot".

So a few weeks later, I noticed this.

Glad to see it wasn't a parking lot, but thought it an odd place to grow crops.

And a few weeks later, they were really tall.

Turns out it was this.

:)