3 May 2008

ONE GOOD, ONE BAD NEWS

Lots of pictures to see here for Photohunt, Round Robins and Quilly's ABC.

I had a very bad surprise when I wanted to upload my pictures for the photo memes. It didn't upload ! instead I got this message :

There were errors during upload.
The following images were not uploaded.
We're sorry, but you have exceeded your photo upload quota. For more information, check out this Blogger Help page.

I checked the Help page and learned that from now on I have to upgrade my "account" which I didn't know of and also that I am in possession of a Google/Blogger Picasa Album which I had never created. It truly was a big surprise. I don't like such surprises, maybe I missed something, but anyway I don't want to pay one penny for uploading pictures !

Have you also had such an experience ? For the moment I use Photobucket.

The other news were far better ! Since yesterday you can used this service :

Blogger now schedules future-dated posts



Scheduled post publishing, which we talked about testing on Blogger in draft last month, is now live for everyone. If you set a post’s date into the future, Blogger will wait to publish until that time comes.



This is a very good invention ! Especially when you are on holidays or for one reason or another are unable to post at a specific day (or hour)

2 May 2008

SHOW & TELL


here



here





More participants are here at Kelly's

I started painting in 1989 after having suffered of a deep depression. The doctors told me that I absolutely had to find a hobby of something I really like to do. I couldn't find anything which was of interest to me. I considered all kind of things and hobbies what other people did, but nothing draw my attention. Finally I remembered that I loved to paint before I married. I digged in old folders and thought I could give it a new try. So I went to private drawing and painting lessons and suddenly my world changed. I found happiness in painting.

After 3 years in this private school, I decided that it would be time for a change and started with Art School in 1992. There I remained until 2000, not because I was too stupid to get a diploma earlier, but I didn't want or need one, I just wanted to stay in that school. So I did everything to double classes by not attending Art history courses or being late with my work submissions. It worked until I myself got fat up of this school and found a nice painting group here in my hometown Waterloo, organized by the city and I am still going there every thursday morning til today.

Here are some paintings I did in the 90th :








cat and doll

1 May 2008

THURSDAY THIRTEEN - STUPID QUOTES

Quilly's photo project letter A is here





Today is the first May. It is a holiday in Belgium and most of the other European countries too. On this day it is the use to offer a Lily of the valley to your beloved once and friends. This Lily of the valley is for YOU ! Happy first of May day !!





13 STUPID QUOTES

1. Smart Talented Unique Person In Demand = STUPID

2. What's Wal-Mart? Do they sell, like Wall stuff? - Paris Hilton

3. A zebra does not change its spots.

4. Smoking kills. If you're killed, you've lost a very important part of your life.

5. A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.

6. I think gay marriage is something that should be between a man and a woman - Arnold Swartzanegger (name spelling is not from me !)

7. Sex on television can't hurt ..... unless you fall off

8. We are sorry to announce that Mr. Albert Brown has been quite unwell, owing to his recent death, and is taking a short holiday to recover.

9. We don't necessarily discriminate. We simply exclude certain types of people

10. Those who survived the San Francisco earthquake said, "Thank God, I'm still alive." But, of course, those who died, their lives will never be the same again

11. If you want to go out in the rain, be prepared to get burned.

12. How to store your baby walker : First, remove baby

13. I never apologize. I'm sorry, but that's just the way I am.

30 Apr 2008

ABC & WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

WEDNESDAY

you will find more participants at Mrs. Nesbitt's place

- ORANGE

This is the first time I am participating ! In my home I have a lot of orange. I like this color, it's bright and light and makes me think of a raising sun.

My bedcover is orange and my cats love to nap on it.



The table cloth too is orange



and in my red kitchen I have a lot of orange too



The sofa in my husband's office


and also the curtains

This is the first time I am participating in ABC Wednesday






Good Night !!














29 Apr 2008

COMPILED NEWS







Iranian Official Warns Against Importing Barbies
A top Iranian judiciary official has warned against the "destructive" cultural and social consequences of importing Barbie dolls and other Western toys.
Prosecutor General Ghorban Ali Dori Najafabadi said in an official letter to Vice President Parviz Davoudi that the Western toys was a "danger" that needed to be stopped. No wonder, they don't wear a veil and he certainly wants to have one alive to play with !



300-Pound Ariz. Inmate Sues Over Jailhouse Menu
An inmate awaiting trial on a murder charge is suing a county in Arizona, complaining he has lost more than 100 pounds because of the jailhouse menu. Broderick Lloyd Laswell says he isn't happy that he's down to 308 pounds after eight months in the Benton County jail. He has filed a federal lawsuit complaining the jail doesn't provide inmates with enough food. I am surprised ! he should be thankful he didn't have to spend money for weight watchers !


Sex Club Selling Used Beds, Furniture
A sex club is selling its used beds, foam mattresses and purple-felt wall coverings.
Among items being offered is a 600-pound icemaker, 26 foam mattresses of various sizes, and a steel-framed bed with headboard lights. It's a pity I don't have enough room, it's too big !


Outrageous: Driver Sues Dead Victim’s Family For Car Damages
A Spanish driver who fatally collided with a cyclist is suing the dead youth’s family 20,000 Euros (£14,830) for the damage the impact of his body did to his luxury car, a Spanish newspaper reported. Some people really are amazing !



Honey-stealing bear costs Macedonian state $3,500
A court in Macedonia has ordered the government to pay a $3,500 fine to a local bee-keeper over a bear that had been stealing his honey, national media said on Friday.
The case came about after a man from the village of Krivogastani, near the town of Bitola, appealed to a local court, claiming damage to his property. Our government will be happy ! we only have bears in a zoo and they are fed anyway by them.

28 Apr 2008

FUN MONDAY - A LITTLE WALK AT THE MIDI MARKET IN BRUSSELS

MANIC MONDAY BELOW




Our host this week The Lurchers wants us to take her on our favourite walk.

I am a lazy person and don't like to walk around just like that in a parc or a wood when I don't have a goal. But every sunday morning when it is not raining I love to go to the midi market in Brussels. I wrote a post about it here on my Travel blog. The market is very big and has about 400 stands.

Usually I walk around there for 1 or 2 and a half hours. Sometimes my girlfriend comes with me and we always have a lot of fun. We take a little drink in one of the typical Brussels' cafés and when it is warm we sit outside on the terrace.

Yesterday morning I went there again and took these pictures. Click on them to biggify.




I take the train from Waterloo to Brussels, in 20 min I am there and I don't need to look for a parking place.


Just where I arrive, outside the station, the market starts.



This is my usual way.



as you can see you find clothes,


and


more clothes, fabric, curtains


Jeans for 5 € (6.50 $) even brands like Lee Cooper or Levis



Leather ware


spices



bags and suitcases



and fruits, vegetables flowers and plants. There are also beauty things, like make up, parfumes, cremes, shampoos etc. for only 2 or 3 € (1 € = 1.50 $) and always famous brands. You also find houseware, radios, batteries whatever you want.

I bought my weekly moroccan bread (forgot to take a picture) which tastes so good and comes just out of the oven, some grapes and even peaches !

Then I had walked enough and returned home by train.



This picture I took out of the window at a station.

MANIC MONDAY - RIP or R.I.P


More participants are here


When I saw the word for this week, I thought about R.I.P which I had seen on grave stones. As a child I didn't know what it meant because RIP in German has no meaning at all.

Later I learned that it meant "rest in peace". "Rest in peace" is a prayer that the deceased may rest peacefully, not in torment, while awaiting Judgment Day. The expression comes originally from "requiescat in pace", Latin for "may he/she rest in peace." In Italian, it is said as "Riposi In Pace." It was in Italy where I learned this meaning.

In Germany graveyards are considered as parcs and are visited by families usually on a sunday walk, even when they don't have any family members or friends laying there. Graveyards are usually very beautiful with lots of trees, bushes, plants, flowers, and banks to sit and rest. There also were beautiful and very interesting statues. As a child I used to play on the graveyard near my home in Bonn, together with my little friends. We played hide and seek behind the gravestones and always had a lot of fun. I am sure that most of the people burried there and "RIP" love to hear the children's laughter and jumping over the graves. At least I would.

Later I learned that this typical German behaviour seemed quite strange to other nationalities and that German tourists really got on the nerves of people in other countries, because they always wanted to see a graveyard and walk around there !









These are pictures of some German graveyards I found on Internet.

27 Apr 2008

WEEKLY WINNERS


is here



More participants here at Sarcastic Mom Weekly winners

Today I have got the most amazing email I ever got since I am blogging !
Last year in August I have been in Eastbourne at the English coast and wrote about it in my Travel Blog. Amongst a lot of other pictures, the last one showed a parrot in a "stroller" (see below)
Now today I got this !

Hello Gattina
My name is Fiona and I didnt actually have a meeting with you when you were in Eastbourne, but you have my picture in your listings!! Well my feet and one of my legs to be honest!!
A friend of mine who has seen my George webpages emailed me a couple of nights ago to let me know that my piccie was elsewhere online. Naturally I wanted to know where!!
George can be seen on www.fluffies.org under the username of parrotpotty - - but if you just google "eastbourne seafront parrot trolley" you will see the first page that comes up is the pushbike story, but there are 51 others to view!
Yes. you guessed it...Im the woman with the parrot in the trolley!!!!!!! haha!




This proves that our world is really small !!

I found my "weekly winners" with the photos of this little girl. She is my son's godchild and I babysittered her for a day because she was sick and her parents are working. Her name is Camille and she really is a sweetie and 1 1/2 years old.







She doesn't look very sick !



My friend's dog has a funny way for sleeping ! He leaves his hindlegs on the seat !



While I cleaned our Terrace, Arthur helped of course !



and Rosie watches over the cleaning products.