Finally, finally

So now that I got myself a job I thought it was finally time to order the new Train record! I gave up hoping it will be released soon in the Netherlands and since Train is my favorite band I really want to have it. Moreover, I think it is still the best record of 2006 I have heard so far (though Bruce Springsteen comes really close). I also ordered Subtitulo by Josh Rouse, another record that I already have in my computer. Can't wait for the mail to arrive! ;-)

My favorite artists according to Last.fm (and I think it is quite right in that ;-)

1 Train 1171
2 Jason Mraz 968
3 Goo Goo Dolls 805
4 Bruce Springsteen 692
5 Josh Kelley 649
6Josh Rouse 648
7 matchbox twenty 643
8 Ron Sexsmith 641
9 Jude 625
10 Switchfoot 573
11 The Juliana Theory 561
12 Johnny Cash 524
13 Fastball 481
14 Joe Firstman 448
15 Over the Rhine 446
16 Laïs 426
17 Neil Young 425
18 Simon & Garfunkel 416
19 Counting Crows 393
20 Steely Dan 380
21 Van Morrison 379
22 Tori Amos 374
23 Pearl Jam 359
24 Howie Day 353
25 Kate Bush 352

Lying in the sun

Didn't have to go to my fun job today, so I after signing the contract for my new job (I am going to work for a company that buys and sells ancient books - starting July 18) I went to the park where I met one of my friends and lay on the grass (no not in the sun as the suggests) and chatted a bit about work and stuff like that. And later on I listened to my favorite park cd: Just enough education to perform by the Stereophonics!
I hardly ever listen to this at home, but I bring it to the park very often...

Also brainstormed a bit on my novel and read some of The mill on the floss which seems to be a very nice book!

Anyways, I love being in the park!

Camera Obscura

Wrote a review of the new Camera Obscura record and every day I fall in love with it a little bit more. It's filled with sweet songs that echo the girly popmusic of the sixties...

Had a great day at work by the way!

In love with life

No particular reason, but I am feeling so happy today!

Had a fun day at work and a good deal of sunshine when waiting on a delayed train!

And now I will start reading The mill on the floss by George Eliot. Decided to put Wings of the dove by Henry James a way for a while because it's a difficult read and I' m to busy to really concentrate on it. Hope this one is easier!

Marco the Builder

Started my working day by listening to Nothing Is Sound by Switchfoot in the train and I found out that it is still getting better each time I listen to it. Had the same experience with The Beautiful Letdown, which took a very long time to grow on me, but has become of my all time favorite records. Their music always makes me feel good and it's always fun to hear a song like Politicians, while entering the city where our government is seated ;-)

By the way, people called me Bob the Builder the other day, because I'm kind of rebuilding the website of the Department of Justice. Today it was fun, because now we can really see it growing, so I do feel a bit like a Bob the Builder now (though I don't really know that guy, so I might just be imaginging things...) Anyway, it's a good experience for me, because I might want to work with websites a lot more in the future.

Counting Crows

This week I got the new Counting Crows live-cd in the mail to review! I'm very happy with this, because I really like this band. New Amsterdam was recorded in Amsterdam in February 2003 and I actually know some people who were there! ;-)

In fact, enthusiastic stories about one of these concerts made me want to see them as well. I got my chance in June and July of that same year and those two concerts are still among my most favorite concerts ever!

My good memories make this cd all the more worthwile, though I can recommend it to everyone who likes the Counting Crows.

Wonderful birthday party and depressing movie...

Wow, just watched the most powerful and dark western I have ever seen... Unforgiven by Clint Eastwood. It's scary and really makes you think, however cliche that may sound... It also made me want to listen to moody music, which I'm doing right now...

Gone is the happy mood I have been in for many days... ;-)

A friend gave me the Unforgiven dvd yesterday for my birthday which I celebrated yesterday, even though I was born in May... It was a great party, I even think it is the best birthday party I ever had and I'm spoiled with loads of presents! It's really good to know I have such nice friends!

Not much time to write these days. I'm working for the government now (Department of Justice) and very busy. Could tell you many funny anecdotes about that though. If I had the time. ;-)

My last day of unemployment and freedom

Just got a phone call. I can start at a new job in July, right after the job that I will start tomorrow... So no more unemployment for me! It will not pay very much, but I will have time to write which is the most important!

Listened to Tori Amos this morning. I think Boys For Pele is her most beautiful record.

The wings of the dove

Reading The wings of the dove by Henry James now. Fascinating, but also very difficult reading. Hope I can find the time to finish it without losing track of the story...

Will go into the city now and maybe sit in the park all afternoon, since the weather seems to be quite lovely again!

Life is sweet

So I had a great weekend in France and here are some pictures to proof it! Unfortunately no photo's of me swimming in the English Channel, but these are pretty cool too, I think. ;-)

It was really great to see my Wyoming friends again!! Hope we will do this more often in the future!

Oh, and I bought me some flip-flops that have already proved their use a lot, since the weather has been extremely hot lately. Have been sitting in the park all afternoon yesterday and today, succesfully brainstorming on my novel and listening to cool music, like Train, Jason Mraz, Stereophonics and Joe Jackson... ;-)

To France!

Whoohoo, tonight I'm going to France to see my Wyoming-friends again!!! *makes a little dance and smiles brightly, while humming Such Great Heights* :-)

Twinkletoes

Tuesday I applied for a short term job at the government and everything went well, so I bought mysef some books to celebrate!

A.A. Milne - When we were very young
A.A. Milne - Winnie-the-pooh
Henry James - The golden bowl
Henry David Thoreau - Walden and civil disobedience
Laurence Sterne - The life & opinions of Tristram Shandy.

Too bad I will have to start working soon, so I won't have that much time to read... :)

Twinkletoes
A.A. Milne

When the sun
shines through the leaves of the apple-tree
When the sun
Makes shadows of the leaves of the apple tree
Then I pass
On the grass
From one leaf to another
From one leaf to its brother
Tip-toe, tip-toe!
Here I go!

Beautiful music

New cd's

Just got back from a weekend at my parent's. After weeks of rain and grey weather, the sun was finally shining again, so today I made a long walk through the countryside with my dad. It was very nice to be back in my old hometown again, though I'm also very happy that I don't live there anymore. ;-)

Yesterday I traded some in cd's at my favorite recordstores. Returned with 4 new cd's: Spoon And Rafter by Mojave 3, Let Love In and Henry's Dream by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds and The Finest Thing by Lori Carson. Since I also bought Abbatoir Blues/The Lyre Of Orpheus by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds I have a lot of new music to listen to all of a sudden. And that, just at the moment when I thought I would quit buying new cd's for some time, because I already have so much great music to listen to...
Lately I have been rediscovering so many of my older music, like for example The Levellers, Nick Cave and Varttina (listening to Kokko right now, this is really music to make you happy!).

Oh, and I also bought the dvd of Walk the line! Watched it with my dad last night and again (third time this year...), it thought it is so great! Have to see all the extra's soon!

Ok, have to go and finish Miss Ravenel's conversion now...

Josh Ritter in Amsterdam!

Ok, so here is my impression of yesterday's wonderful Josh Ritter concert! For my own convenience I will just copy/past the story I wrote for my last.fm page. Also, I stole a picture from the web of Josh, because I still haven't got a camera...

Yesterday I saw the most wonderful concert in Paradiso, Amsterdam. I was there with my good friend StarCollector (and BertSpaan turned out to be there as well!) to see Josh Ritter and it was above all expectations! First there were two opening acts: Declan O'Rourke (who I had never heard of, but played some good songs and turned out to be a very sympathatic performer) and Nicolai Dunger (this guy was really weird - screaming and yelling, improvising, and inviting somebody from the public on stage to echo his words - but he was also extremely funny).
These artists got the audience(well, most of it) in a good mood for the man everybody came for: Josh Ritter who turned out to have come especially for the audience! He kept on saying that he was so happy to be there (so was I!) and was all smiles even when some stupid people in the back kept on talking through his songs. He made some nice remarks about Gorillas in the mist and Jane Goodall to one of those guys, which was really funny. However, there were at least two moments when everybody seemed to hold their breath and kept completely quiet: during the beautiful Wings (when all the lights went out, creating a magical atmosphere) and Lawrence, KS, the last song he played, completely acoustic without microphones and whatever, which was very impressive. But those were not the only highlights. I was especially thrilled to hear him perform my favorite songs Me & Jiggs, Golden Age Of Radio (dedicated to Johnny Cash and Harrisburg. Also amazing were some of the best songs of his latest record: Thin Blue Flame, Girl In The War and Lillian, Egypt. Not to mention older songs like Snow Is Gone and You Don't Make It Easy Babe (dedicated to the man who talked too much ;-) and so much more! I had the most wonderful time and I will definitely knock on his door if I ever come to Idaho! ;-) For now, I will just listen to his records a lot!

For those who have never heard of this guy: he is somewhere between Bob Dylan and (a more happy version of) Nick Drake and one day - if he keeps making records as good as Hello Starling and The Animal Years - he will have the same status as these artists!