Kongos live in concert

November 7 2014 in a small location in Amsterdam called Bitterzoet the band Kongos put up quite a show. The band consists of 4 brothers and the type of music is quite difficult to explain, but I'll try my best. It's a fresh sound in the rock genre with drum beats that are rather influenced by African drums. It's sort of rhythmic rock, rock with an african bite if you will. 

The concert was very cheap (10 euros) and since I like their album I had no reason whatsoever not to go and check them out. I have seen a number of 'smaller' bands and I am willing to bet that the Kongos will not remain as small as they are now. They gave a great live show. 

The musicality of these 4 brothers shows how talented they are, and they already have a strong connection and chemistry with the audience. They write and play their music and everyone of them plays an irreplaceable role in the band: 

• Dylan Kongos – bass guitar, lap slide guitar, vocals

• Daniel Kongos – guitar, vocals

• Jesse Kongos – drums, percussion, vocals

• Johnny Kongos – accordion, keyboard, vocals

Even though Johnny stood at the far side of the stage, but that would be because of the small venue. 

And even their stage manager came onstage for 2 songs showing that he's a great MC. 

They've played mostly their songs from the album 'Lunatic' and as encore they've played 2 songs from their father. So, all in all it was a great show displaying what a talented family they are. Oh and a lot of head banging with hair going in all directions ~ awesome!

Oh and they actually are very cool guys. They mingled with the crowd after the show and I even got to meet them! 

If you're curious on what kind of music they make, here's a youtube playlist you can listen to (I highly recommend you do)

Last-minute move to NYC?

It's been a while since the last time I wrote here, moving house and work played a huge role in me not having any free time on my hands. But the busy times are almost over thankfully. In the meantime a peculiar dream I've had last night:

I was in New York City bummed out because we just heard from the head of our department that the entire hallway from work will be moving to NYC. Now the reason I was bummed out was that I just moved and had to pay so much money for the floors and new furniture and just NOW he mentioned 2 weeks in advance that the entire hallway will move to NYC and continue research there. Why he couldn't tell us earlier remained a mystery for me. So yeah, I was the only one who was bummed out and not enjoying scouting for a new location for the lab. I wondered why my other colleagues who just bought a new house weren't bummed. Anyway, we walked into a building on Times Square that the head of the department was interested in. It was an interesting setup for a lab. Clear floors with yet no tables and in each of the corners there were 5 desks, but the corners weren't set up logically. So I doubted whether this would work out for a good lab setting. I was just very upset about the last minute move... I finally moved to a nice place and then 3 weeks later I can move again... Great. Just great...

Image taken from google

Rishloo - Landmines

In a previous entry I've written about how Rishloo is back together and how excited I was about an up and coming album. Well, their first single is released and I have to admit I've been listening to it pretty much non stop:

This is exactly why I absolutely love this band. Every aspect is great, from the musicality to the lyrics and how these combine on another adding a ton of emotion to the piece. It's very intricate and even though this single points to a change or growth of the band, it's still very much the sound of 'Rishloo'. I seriously can't wait to hear the rest of the album. 

The roles we tend to play

As a female I've heard many times about how a man should be, how a man should treat a woman. This starts from kids movies and continues through life. The boy saves the girl, the man protects the woman... We are set up to play the role of a damsel in distress. As soon as we clearly show that we can take care of ourselves, that we are independent and able to pay our own bills without any problems, we tend to end up alone, single. Is this because we as successful women set up too high standards for men and these type of men are just too scarce? Or do we scare off men? Or perhaps both? 

Since this world is not set for independent women, it's tough for both sexes to adapt to this. I've read many times that we have to let men feel needed by asking them to help us in simple tasks in the house or simply opening a can. Isn't this silly? Why would you put yourself down this way by asking for help with something you could easily handle yourself? Isn't it better to actually ask for help in things you honestly can't do? 

It's sad that the world today is set up in a way where men have to feel like women need them for solving and/or fixing things? There are women bodybuilders out there. Imagine them asking their husband/ boyfriend to open up a can... Isn't it better to have honesty in this world? Yes it's great to be in someone's arms and feel safe. But I'm sure this goes both ways. This feeling of being safe relates more to trust you feel for the person you're with and not so much feeling safe from burglary for example. So I hope the standards for male and female will change and we could all just be honest with one another without feeling the need to read between the lines or act in a way you feel you have to. We all need to be real and stop trying to portray a character made by the media.

Alter Bridge - Fortress (my new obsession)

I am addicted to music in general. Not a day goes by where I don't listen to it and I would prefer to forget my phone at home over my mp3-player (yes I have an mp3-player, no ipod or whatever and it's been working GREAT for me for the past 4 years). 

Anyway I've been a bit late to actually listen to Alter Bridge's latest album Fortress since it came out in September 2013. The reason was that after Blackbird I was a little bit disappointed with ABIII, though I also haven't intensely listened to that one either. It didn't grasp me, so I listened to other stuff. 

With the first single from Fortress (addicted to pain) I was also not grasped. I don't really understand why they went with this song as a first single. Pretty much all the other songs are way better than that one. Not saying it's a bad song, it's just not a good representation of how good the album is.

Video-clip:

I started to really listen to the other songs of the album about 2 weeks ago and I simply can't stop. The top songs for me from the album are: Cry of Achilles, Lover, All Ends Well and Fortress. 

It is a great piece of work we needed in the rock genre. The riffs are great, but then again that is to be expected from Mark Tremonti, and Myles Kennedy's voice is still one of the greatest in this era of rock. There is a reason why Slash wanted him on 2 albums and along on tour - just saying! 

So all in all I am obsessed and so happy I finally gave this album a good listen! The only bummer is that I just missed them when they were playing a show here. Next time I'll be there for sure! 

Here's a youtube clip of the Fortress - the first song I favorited from the album:

'Let's get some shoes!' Sneaker edition

Heyy!

I've bought some sneakers the past week and since I love watching what shoes others have bought, or shoe hauls or whatever you want to call it, I figured I'd share some of my shoes :) I don't have quite as many as a lot of others I've seen online, but according to my friends I have more than enough shoes. And of course they are right, but (yes there's a but), sometimes you need some other shoes right? I wanted a bit more sneakers for work. Not a good enough reason to buy new ones? Oh well... I'm not returning them :D So anyway here goes:

A bit more fancy sneakers. I wanted to try this style out and I like it actually. Very cute and comfy underneath a skirt and they're more casual than sporty. I like them! From Anna Field

I wanted a bit more fancy low sneakers so I opted for these. I think the gold gives them a bit more edge. From Anna Field

I absolutely LOVE this colour! And they are just sporty and easy going so I wanted these to replace some other sneakers I've had for about 5 years... They're in the last picture FYI ;) From Dockers

My tennis shoes! I started tennis again after 6 years and had these for 2 years. I like these more than the 'usual' all white tennis shoes. I like the splash of blue and they're so comfortable. From Sketchers (resistance)

I am supposed to throw these out... They have holes in them and are about 5 years old. But I just can't throw them out. I call these my 'hippie' shoes because of the sparkly 'peace & love' sign on them. From Sketchers. 

I wanted to have a 'rougher' setting for these shoes since they're meant to be outdoorsy and such, so that's why I chose to photograph them outside.

Also if you didn't get the title reference, you should check this old youtube clip:

We all have our 'down' times...

I meant to be blogging more than I have, but sadly life happens and I said 'sadly' because it seems like this year is one of the most emotional years I've had. We can't be happy all the time and these times it's all more sad than happy, but who knows, maybe it'll turn around and many good things are about to happen. I do hope so. 

I've had to say quite a few of goodbyes this year. And these are always very tough. Along with that I just found out I will never see 'my' dogs again. I saw 'my' because I'm not the person taking care of them because I live halfway across the world. It saddens me that I have no influence on the decisions that have been made. I feel powerless with a forced understanding for why I will never see Rex or Maxie wag their tails again. If I only knew this the last time I saw them... A lot of 'maybes' and 'what ifs' which we all know leads nowhere than tiredness of the mind. Wouldn't it be great if we could go back in time to spend a some time with the loved ones who won't be here much longer or have already passed on? 

Anyway I would like to end this message with a quote a former friend of mine once sent me when my other dog was euthanized:

The Rainbow Bridge
Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.
When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.
All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.
They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.
You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.
Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....
Author unknown...

Rex

Maxie

French goodies

The French know good food. I wish there was a french supermarket in my neighborhood or a place that sells french food because I miss the food so much! So I thought I'd share some of the food that I wish I could get more often. But maybe it's a good thing, who knows I might be obese if I could get these whenever I want... And yes there is more, and so there will be more posts about French food I'm addicted to. 

The BEST chocolate you can even have! Trust me, these are truly the best! 

A 'healthier' type of candy. Different fruity flavors, I'm not too much a fan of the taste, but they look so cute in a bowl :D

I absolutely loved this since I was a little kid. And if you were wondering, yes I did take this picture a while back ;) I wish I had this in my fridge now... So good! It's a type of yoghurt, very simple but so good.

Troll 2

A family vacationing in a small town discovers the entire town is inhabited by goblins in disguise as humans, who plan to eat them.

Troll 2 with a rating of 2.6 on IMDB is known as one of the best worst horror movies. And I agree, it's a bad horror movie and because it really is so bad, it gets funny. Now I've watched this movie with Rifftrax because I really did not feel like watching it in a serious setting (which this movie should not be seen in anyway). If you don't know what Rifftrax it's funny commentaries along with the movie. It makes watching these types of movies much better! You can check out their website: http://www.rifftrax.com

Going back to the movie, it's called Troll 2 but there aren't any trolls in there WHATSOEVER. Nope, not even 1! And the green slime which comes whenever someone ate the food from the goblins (yes they are plenty of goblins, no trolls though) kind of reminds me of nickelodeon slime... "Troll 2 - sponsored by nickelodeon slime!" Wy not? 

Either way the movie is known for it's overacting and just generally bad acting like this scene which has been going around on youtube for what seems like forever:

"But then why watch it if you already know that it's a bad movie?"Because it's funny. These are not the type of movies you should watch in a serious setting. It's entertaining because -just like many other best worst movies- they weren't meant to be bad, but came out that way instead (don't ask how or why). And for one, I like to watch these movies with a bunch of friends and just comment on it and laugh while it's playing. So much fun! Perhaps while showing this movie, eat some green food and drink some green stuff! Just to get the atmosphere going.

Either way I recommend this movie if you're into the bad kinds of movies that turn out to be funny. If you're not sure whether or not it's your kind of genre, you can try watching it with Rifftrax. Then you're in the right type of setting for these types of movies. Here's a clip from the movie with Rifftrax:

 

A lab on a beach

It's been quite a while since I've written down a dream I've had. I either didn't have the time to sit down and forgot afterwards, or I only remembered vague parts, so it made no sense to write them down. But here is a short one! Even though it felt very long in the dream itself...

I was working in a lab near the ocean in the US (since the entire dream was in US english). The benches were also on the beach, which was a normal thing in this dream. I was working on an experiment and someone else was working next to me. After a while I noticed he was just standing there doing nothing. So at first I figured he's just thinking, but this went on for a while. So I turned to him and asked what's up? To which he smiled and said nothing while he walked away. I was wondering whether I scared him off? He is known for being a very shy person and also pretty distant. Either way, other colleagues came in as I was finishing my work and we went for a run on the beach. It wasn't a very nice beach, a lot of pieces of wood and seaweeds and some bigger rocks here and there, so we had to be careful, because we wore no shoes. 

I was then alone on a side of the beach and enjoyed the view of the ocean, when I saw that shy dude fishing. I was thinking about going up to him and talk or not. I didn't want to scare him off, but he seemed like someone who would have an interesting point of view in life and therefor I figured we might have some really cool discussions. Then it got very crowded and I was back in the lab and I lost the sight of him. There were only people around me I didn't know and I couldn't get out because of the crowd. I started panicking and pushed some people aside so I could move in the crowd towards a door, only to realize this was a beach, there aren't any doors here. And I woke up. 

Image taken from google, it looked the most like the beach from my dream.

Cinema Macabre: John Carpenter Double Bill

Yesterday was the first night of the Cinema Macabre in the small theatre called Cavia, which was the John Carpenter night, better known for directing Halloween and The Thing. 

I attended the night along with a couple of friends and I did not realize you could only pay with cash, so thankfully a friend of mine payed for my ticket which, again thankfully, was only 5 euros. We grabbed a drink (I don't recommend the white wine) and we went ahead and chose our seats. There were about 7 rows, and after a short speech from the organizers the first movie started: Prince of Darkness. A movie from the 80's which is based on the end of the world through religious ways. I liked it. It had a couple of scares and I liked the story.

Then there was a break and the second movie started: In the mouth of madness. I really liked this one! Especially the Lovecraft references. It's a very different kind of horror. But this one was also part of the trilogy of movies John made revolving around the apocalypse. This one was through the art of writing books. I highly recommend this movie, it's weird and trippy with a couple of scares. I'll probably watch this one a second time, or buy the dvd.

I'm really glad they organized this event and I'm happy to hear that they are planning to organize these every 2 months. I think I'll be a regular here! It's a great way to watch older horror movies in a theatre setting, especially in such a cozy theatre. Do recommend! Especially if you love horror movies.

Breal fashion haul

Hiya!

So I've recently splurged and bought quite a bit of clothes... With (of course) the excuse that I have a job now and thus I need some fancy-er clothes! Not that I would be able to wear everything there, but hey, you have to pay the shipping costs, so if you have more, than the overall costs would be less per item. Yeah... Excuses I tell myself. I guess we all do right? (please tell me I'm not the only one)

These items are all from the brand 'Breal', and I am very happy with how these fit me! There wasn't 1 item I was not happy with, plus I got them all in super sale deals (which makes me so very happy).

Anyway without further ado, the pictures of the items!!

This was one of the items which I though, nice to go to work with and wear with some nice jeans to make it a bit less dressy. You can roll up the sleeves and fasten them with a button, or just leave them long - so versatile! And it sparkles! I love sparkles :D

A little vest, which I wanted to try for the days where you don't know whether you'd be cold or warm. So this I will use for layering. Especially on days where I'd have to run around in combination with working on the computer. And I like the lace detail.

A simple white blouse. What I really like about this one is that behind the buttons there is extra fabric so your bra wouldn't be showing if it pulls a bit. Why don't all blouses have this? I think it's brilliant! 

I don't have anything with these type of rushes and I've been looking at these type of shirts for a while now, so I figured, why not try it out? Plus it's a good shirt for work on warmer days! 

Okay so this is one of those that isn't very easy to wear to work since it sparkles so much! But as I've mentioned before, I love sparkles! The shoulders are cut out as well and in front (which shows as white here) is actually metal, which I think makes a nice detail! It's just so pretty! 

This is a reasonable simple black long sleeve, except that there are red sequins! So depending on what you wear underneath it could be both dressy as casual. Again - the diversity! 

This is my absolute favorite one! A mint green blouse with little metal blocks at the end of the strings which you tie either in a bow (like in the picture) or a simple knot. The sleeves are cut out in a very elegant way! And I've also taken a picture of the lace detail in the back. So pretty!! I absolutely love it!!

This is one of the fun shirts. The print is a silver metallic and the blouse is see-through (rrrrRRrrRr) so you could mix it up with a very bright tank-top underneath. Or just black to make the silver pop more. All depending on what type of look you're going for. The diversity!

This one is a bit more daring and very rock & roll! Which I love as well! But the pink girly part in it makes it more me. I guess I'm a girly rocker :D I tried to capture the sleeves, but that wasn't working out at all, so I'll just explain the detailing there. There's a zipper which you can zip open or keep closed, depending on whether you want to show your shoulders. I would wear it open because that accents the detailing more and makes it more edgy. 

And the pants! I'm always a bit scared of buying pants online, because the size just changes per brand and somehow I always buy them way too big. Which I guess is better than too small, because I have belts and thus the pants will stay up. These pants are very comfortable and just a little big too big - but a belt would be fine, plus this way there is minimum chance of the much dreaded muffin top! Which, I admit, I have with some pants... It's not cool or fun at all. The color of these pants doesn't come across well on the picture, they're more mango-like. while here they look more beige... So add a bit of orange and you'd be closer to the actual color :D 

Naturally when I saw they had scarfs, and in particular, scarfs with those fuzzy balls on them, I really could not say no. I am addicted to scarfs, and is one is so cute! I did lose one of the balls yesterday but (being super lucky) on my way home I found it again! So all is good! (I was very bummed out when I lost it, especially since I only got this order Friday) 

So that's my haul! For my doing this was a huge one! But somehow I feel like I needed it all. I noticed while looking at the pictures there's a color-trend in there... This was not on purpose. But I would 10/10 suggest this brand to everyone! The quality feels good and the size is great. 

<3

Spring colors (candle & polish)

Yesterday I visited a dutch store called 'Hema', and I indulged in some of their things. Guilty as charged! But since I recently started my new job, I wanted something to make my room a bit more cozy and a scented candle is always a good item to have for that! I tried the smaller version of the 'Jasmine, freesia, pear' scented candle because I couldn't really smell it well in the store and I admit, I was attracted to it because of the spring color and the design on the glass. I'm a sucker for those things. But, also, the combination of the scents really intrigued me. 

So I've burned the candle a bit and I absolutely know now that I'll get the bigger version as soon as this one is done. The fragrant is so nice! Not at all overwhelming (though that should've been clear since the unlit candle doesn't really smell that much), but enough that when you leave and re-enter the room, you can smell it clearly! 

Next to the candle, I also bought a set of nail polishes, of which 1 is almost the exact same color as the candle! So I figured to combine these 2, since it's a springy color and I just liked the way it photographed. 

The polish is not as high of a quality, but then again it was just below 3 euro's. The polish is thick and gel-like, which for my nails is not very handy, because that makes it so easy for me to pull off... But the color is very pretty and you just need 3 layers to get a nice coverage, as I have in the above photograph (excuse me for not having model hands or nails, I wish I did). It doesn't dry fast, even with a fast drying topcoat, I still have to be very careful with my nails. But hey, I like the color and I did not have to spend that much on it so I can't complain :) 

I just love that winter has pretty much passed and the days are getting longer. Summer can not come by fast enough! 

<3

My collection: Born to Shop from Johnson Brothers

The collection 'Born to Shop' from the Johnson Brothers is an absolute favorite of mine. It is very girly, which is obvious since the collection is called 'Born to Shop', it's just very cheeky and I love it! It makes me happy and whenever I have friends over it just adds to the coziness. It does remind me of the 'Blond - Amsterdam' collection here in the Netherlands, but I have to admit, I prefer this one. The graphics here just appeal to me more. Now I've recently ordered a couple more pieces and since these arrived I figured why not share my collection? So here it is! The collection I have as of now! 

A tea set for 1. The text reads: 'A woman is like a tea bag... ...you never know how strong she is until she get into hot water'

A mug which reads: 'Sunshine, friends and laughter always welcome'

One of my favorite mugs which reads: 'Seen it all, done it all, can't remember most of it'

A mug to which I have a bowl that belongs to it. It reads: 'You'll always be my friend, you know too much' 

The bowl belonging to the mug above.

Even the handle is decorated :D

Mug that reads: 'I'm only as strong as the coffee I drink and the hairspray that I use'

Christmas mug that reads: 'It's all too much, wake me up when it's over' 

I am always looking for more pieces which is not easy since we can't get them here in the Netherlands, so if anyone knows where I can get them or order them, I would love to know :D

<3

Newly discovered bands!

Don't you just love those days where you click on a video clip on youtube and it turns out to be a great song! No? Well I do, so I'm just gonna keep giving those days a lot of love!

First up, a band called Lydia. Alternative rock, but still very mellow and the singers voice is different. Maybe a bit more towards the direction of Mew and JJ72, who I've also listened to a lot. Lydia does also have a female vocalist as well. Anyway the song 'I woke up near the sea' is just beautiful, and I tend to like songs about water/ the ocean. What can I say? I'm a true Island girl! 

But without further ado, here's that clip that got me hooked on the band:

Then a bit more upbeat: Kongos! I discovered this band today by also just randomly clicking on youtube music clips and again, I was immediately excited and happy! The music is just so upbeat and I like the raw music style of theirs, as well as the drums! Great music for doing some happy cleaning here, which I am going to get at as soon as this is posted.

So here is that clip:

Here's to a good weekend! *cheers*

Peace, love and stay positive!

There are many different kinds of people living in the world today. From their outer appearances to their inner selves, what they share publicly to what they keep for themselves. This is all so fascinating, as well as frustrating at times. I've had the pleasure of knowing many different types of people and I hope I will get to know even more. It helps me with understanding different points of view, and it leads to interesting conversations. 

We live in a tough world; you have to look out for yourself. I've written an entire story on this just now and then I decided to delete it all again because I was going too much into the understanding of various backgrounds and personality traits and such. So I figured to keep it more simple and not to ramble on for you guys reading this. The message I want to bring forth is that we all have to gain understanding for one another. From the wallflower, to the popular ones. Everyone has their cross they have to bear and no one deserves to be treated badly. We all look the same on the inside. So I would like to end this post by saying (typing): treat others the way you want to be treated and wishing everyone peace, love and stay positive! I think this will be my motto!