Who Hello noelwr!

[IloveAsschers13]

So I was just reading a thread in BWW and I saw you posted about living in the Netherlands... I think that is so cool! I just got back from there a little while ago and I want to go back.

Tell us about yourself! How did you get to where you are now, how your wedding stuff is going, etc. I would *love* to hear about you!

 

[noelwr]

hi, sorry I let you down by not replying, but I didn''t know about this thread. just happened to look at it today and saw my name!

I used to only go into the Bridal forum, but now that I''m married I''m trying to get more people posting in Newlyweds. even though my wedding is done and dusted, I still love looking at my photos and still enjoy looking at others''.

I live in Holland, and I am Dutch, but English-speaking. my parents are both Dutch (Dutch-Indonesian, they were kicked out of Indonesia when it declared its independence as they were mixed and then it was hard living in Holland because they weren''t fully Caucasian... but anyway, that''s a different story). my parents were living in Brazil as expats when I was born, and a year later we moved to Venezuela for 2 years, and then to New Jersey for 1 year. I spoke Portuguese and Spanish until I moved to the States and learned English instead. I was 4 when we moved to Holland and I attended the American School from K-12. my college years were spent in New York City (I was there on 9/11, I think I actually came in on the last Path train into the tower), and after I graduated I had to move back to Holland because my major was to general (International Management) and I couldn''t land a job to keep me in the States. in the first week I was back home, I met my now DH, and moved in with him after 3 months. a year later we bought an apartment together, and after being 6 years together I asked him to marry me (it was a leap year, so I bought the engagement watch and got down on one knee and that stuff). we were married in Holland on 1 Sep of this year and again in South Africa on 12 Sep. he is from South Africa and all his friends and family are there, and it worked out well for us because it''s so much cheaper to have a wedding there.

I work in IT, as a SAP specialist in supply chain management. DH and I make good money and we love to buy nice stuff (be it jewelry or furniture or electronics). we also love to travel (I have been to every continent except Antartica), and I plan our vacations in details at least a year beforehand. mostly we love relaxing on beautiful beaches and snorkeling, but we are also in love with SoCal and would move there if we won the lottery. ideally I would like to move away from Holland, but DH moved here 8 years ago and is completely in love with it, and as I am completely in love with him, it is more important for me to be with him than to live elsewhere. Holland is actually a really easy place for expats to live because a lot of people speak English, you can buy a house, get good tax benefits (only as expat) and we have great public transportation.

what I don''t like about Holland is that the people can be very rude but that''s probably just the people in the Randstad area, which is the major business area between Amsterdam, the Hague and Rotterdam. also, I hate having to translate Dutch letters for DH or any of my colleagues. written Dutch is very complicated and I never went to Dutch school.

IloveAsschers13 - I''d love to hear about your experience in Holland.

 

[noelwr]

by the way, tv is a big part of our lives as in Holland the American tv shows are running several seasons behind. downloading movies/shows is legal in Holland, so that''s why we can watch most of the shows a day after they come out in the US. so here are the ones I watch:

Lost (my absolute favourite)
Psych
House
Castle
The Mentalist
Saturday Night Live
Better Off Ted
Two and Half Men
How I Met Your Mother
Smallville
The Vampire Diaries
The Secret Life of the American Teenager
10 Things I Hate About You
24
The Tudors

DH watches about 4x as much as I do. you name the show, he probably watches it.

 

[katamari]

Hi double-date-wedding-twin! You never told us much about your reception in BWW, so I was hoping you could tell us a little more about it, please! I also want to know what your favorite places you traveled to are--especially since you have been virtually everywhere.

My DH lived in Haarlem for 2 years, so I quite jealous of you for getting to live in the Netherlands, too!

p.s. I also love Psych and House. Great shows! I am also very jealous that downloading is legal in Holland.

 

[noelwr]

hi katamari

we had a wonderful wedding in South Africa. we got really lucky with the weather, and everything went perfectly. apparently people called up our in-laws after to tell them how great it was. the only thing I would do over is walking down the aisle. I kept telling my brother that he must walk really slow (he gave me away), and then once the music started he did exactly what I asked but I totally forgot and was rushing and dragging the poor guy down the aisle! here are the links to my photos (don''t know if you saw them already).

non-pro pics: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-non-pro-south-africa-wedding-photos.126002/

pro pics: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/professional-photos-wedding-south-africa.126276/

regarding travel, my favorite places are Southern California, Las Vegas, Thailand and the Maldives (where we spent our honeymoon). I also liked the Bahamas, but I''m sure there are better islands than the one I''ve been to. we''re planning to go to Ko Phi Phi in Thailand during spring next year (that''s where they filmed the movie THE BEACH) and in the fall we''ll probably head back to SoCal and visit Hawaii. I love Thailand because it''s so beautiful and the people are so extremely friendly. we''re really into beach/snorkel vacations, so I''d also love to go to the Great Barrier Reef, Seychelles, more Caribbean Islands and something exotic like Fiji.

 

[katamari]

Date: 11/2/2009 4:37:37 AM
Author: noelwr

hi katamari


we had a wonderful wedding in South Africa. we got really lucky with the weather, and everything went perfectly. apparently people called up our in-laws after to tell them how great it was. the only thing I would do over is walking down the aisle. I kept telling my brother that he must walk really slow (he gave me away), and then once the music started he did exactly what I asked but I totally forgot and was rushing and dragging the poor guy down the aisle! here are the links to my photos (don''t know if you saw them already).


non-pro pics: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-non-pro-south-africa-wedding-photos.126002/


pro pics: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/professional-photos-wedding-south-africa.126276/


regarding travel, my favorite places are Southern California, Las Vegas, Thailand and the Maldives (where we spent our honeymoon). I also liked the Bahamas, but I''m sure there are better islands than the one I''ve been to. we''re planning to go to Ko Phi Phi in Thailand during spring next year (that''s where they filmed the movie THE BEACH) and in the fall we''ll probably head back to SoCal and visit Hawaii. I love Thailand because it''s so beautiful and the people are so extremely friendly. we''re really into beach/snorkel vacations, so I''d also love to go to the Great Barrier Reef, Seychelles, more Caribbean Islands and something exotic like Fiji.

I also really want to go to Seychelles! DH and I looked into it for our wedding, but it was just too expensive. Same with, Thailand. I am so terribly jealous that you have been there and are going again! I want to see a thousand pics when you get back. A honeymoon in the Maldives sounds heavenly! Did you enjoy it?

I have to say that there are better Caribbean islands than the Bahamas, though they are certainly beautiful.

Thanks for the links! I loved seeing those pics!

 

[noelwr]

a pic from my honeymoon. we had a bungalow in the water with a ladder directly into the ocean (was shallow, depending on the tide and plenty of snorkeling to do around)

 

[Skippy123]

Date: 11/13/2009 10:05:06 AM
Author: noelwr
a pic from my honeymoon. we had a bungalow in the water with a ladder directly into the ocean (was shallow, depending on the tide and plenty of snorkeling to do around)

oh wow, this is beautiful! Your wedding pictures are gorgeous too; what a beautiful bride!!!

 

[Porridge]

Hey noelwr, hoe is het? I lived in Enschede for the past 3 years! I loved it. Some of my friends from there are now living in Amsterdam. I would love to go back and live there for a while. What part of the Netherlands are you in?
Groetjes!

 

[noelwr]

Porridge - I am living in the Hague. where have you moved to now?

 

[Porridge]

Back home to Ireland.
I loved the Hague - we used to take day trips surfing in Scheveningen as much as we could.

 

[noelwr]

oh, ok, so you didn''t move to much better climate, though you actually have hills, mountains and beautiful nature. I''ve seen palm trees in Dublin. very bizarre. or maybe they looked like palm trees and were something else...

surfing in Scheveningen (or anywhere in Holland) seems very cold.

 

[Porridge]

Yeah it is cold...but not quite as cold as the west cost of Ireland! That can get pretty icy. With a wetsuit it''s bearable.

Hmmm the trees and hills are beautiful, but the drawback is the constant rain! I liked the weather a bit better in the Netherlands, snow in the winter and sunnier summers.
I really miss the Christmas markets this year! We always took a trip to Muenster or Essen and I just loved them.

 

[noelwr]

I love German Christmas markets. but we''re not going this year. this weekend I still have to set up the tree (with my Delft Blue ornament collection) and on Sunday go to a birthday party.

but back to the Christmas markets... it also gave us a reason to go into the German department stores and they have so much great stuff compared to Holland! I mean they have a whole crafts section. they''re not really into crafts in Holland.

 

[Porridge]

Oooh yeah, shopping in Germany can be great. My parents have a little place near Munich, and I will never get tired of shopping in that city! I''m pretty uncreative so never noticed the lack of craft shops in Holland. I''m actually in the middle of organising a trip to Amsterdam in February, I can''t wait!

 

[noelwr]

it was horribly snowy this weekend and icy on the road, but I am sure it will melt before Christmas. I can''t remember the last time we had snow on Christmas.

what fun things do you have planned to do in Amsterdam?

 

[Porridge]

Well I''m thinking of postponing now - the cold weather here has taken us by surprise and the country has all but shut down! We''re nearly out of salt, and there''s talks of running out of de-icer for the planes! What''s the weather like over there? I think I''ll wait til it''s a bit warmer...then I can spend a comfortable day strolling around the 9 streets, with many stops for coffee and food along the way

A friend of mine is house-sitting in the Jordaan for the next while, so I definitely want to get over while she''s still there!

 

[noelwr]

yup, it''s cold here, too, and the snow and ice also cause traffic jams and public transportation disruption. i think it''s a good idea to wait for warmer weather.

 

[IloveAsschers13]

Hey Noelwr- I didn't see you ever answered but I am so glad you did!

I loved the Netherlands when I went. It was a study abroad through my college (Michigan state) and we were kind of "stationed" in Maastricht. We then went to Amsterdam for five days, as well as day trips to Köln, Aachen, Paris, and Brugges.

Best time I have ever had in my life. I loved Maastricht the most. I am actually wearing a sweatshirt of the college right now haha. I also loved every single bite of food that I ate there. I tried to try foods that were unique to the Netherlands, but I wouldn't go near the herring, as I am a little scared of it, but oh my, I am in love with cheese, so I was in cheesey heaven.

I think it is INCREDIBLY interesting how you moved around so much! I am going into teaching and I would LOVE to teach at an international school in the benelux area. I haven't been near the Hague at all, but I did find that the Dutch people I encountered in passing were a lot more quiet than Americans, but the younger college age people were SO friendly and outgoing. That probably had to do with Maastricht University being in Maastricht.

I recently made a couple friends who go to Utrecht University right now who had come over here for a sort of research program at msu. They were so nice and friendly, it just backed-up my opinion of how lovely the Dutch people I have met are

I looked at pictures of your wedding and it's funny, the whole time I thought your husband was Dutch and I was like MAN is he tall... no wonder... but he is South African! How awesome- my aunt is from South Africa and she moved to Canada when she was about 15, I think?

On a random note, I took German last semester for fun, and I fell in love with it! It's just difficult to continue to learn it because of the fact that there are not many German speakers I encounter on a daily basis. I have been trying to keep up my German skills by watching tons of German movies (and I have watched about 3-4 Dutch movies too, but I am well aware that there is not that big of a selection of movies- I would love some suggestions)

It is my dream to move to the Netherlands one day or at least Belgium or West Germany because I just loved it there. It is ALSO my dream to travel to every continent. I am sincerely fascinated with you and your travels and your life, not in a creepy way I promise.

Sorry about this novel BTW....

PS Porridge- I went to Ireland as well when I was on my study abroad. I have TONS of family there. They mostly live in Tullamore and Dún Laoghaire and I want to go back to Ireland so bad too! Everyone was so nice there too

 

[noelwr]

good to finally meet you!

actually, you are right. my husband is Dutch. his father moved from Holland when he (his father) was young, so DH was born and grew up in South Africa for 27 years before moving to Holland. he loves it here, partially because he doesn''t feel like a giant all the time. though on average he is still taller than most, but at least there are a few other tall people.

well, there''s a good choice of international schools (including American, German, French and British) in the Benelux area so hopefully your teaching dream will come true. in the south of Holland, the people are much friendlier, plus they have much lovelier melodic accents. this is most likely why you met so many nice people in Maastricht. people are a bit different and rude in the Randstad area (Hague, Amsterdam, Rotterdam). I love to go to the thermal spa near Maastricht... also because they have actually have hills and it isn''t as flat as the rest of Holland.

regarding Dutch movies, I personally am not a big fan. the Dutch aren''t as talented as the Americans because the school system does not encourage development of talents such as singing & acting. anyway, movies I can think of are De Lift (horror movie about an elevator that kills people), Alles Is Liefde, Karakter (Character). I also like Girl with a Pearl Earring though that is actually an English-speaking movie taking place in Holland.

have you noticed that in tv shows and movies they always mention the Dutch in some random comment?

 

[IloveAsschers13]

Hey Noelwr!

It''s funny you mention that Americans always mention the Dutch in comments- SO TRUE! Since I got back from my trip which has been about 7 months, I notice it EVERYWHERE! There are streets called Holland, and here in MI we actually have a Holland MI. And in movies (Ha Austin Powers) and shows... I have noticed it a lot! I have seen a Girl with a Pearl Earring because last year I took a humanities class based on Artists and we studied their lives through movies made about them.

When I was in Amsterdam, we were at a bar at the same time as this Dutch men''s volleyball team and they were so tall! I know you are shorter than me, but being 5''3" I got a BUNCH of elbows slammed on to the TOP of my head.

A lot of things are related to the Dutch that we have in strange every day type conversation- gong "Dutch" on the bill (which I looked up and it''s actually quite offensive ha) and using a Dutch oven to cook. Not to mention I think just about everyone in college wants to travel to Amsterdam for obvious reasons

There was a huge spa-type place in Aachen- it was a place with natural healing waters- thermal waters? I think it was called something like Bad Aachen which I ended up learning means something to do with a bath.

I just wish it wasn''t so expensive to travel over to where you are, or else I would all the time.

 

[noelwr]

just remember Pennsylvania Dutch has nothing to do with Holland.

going Dutch isn't offensive to us. it's a way of life! it's funny how if something is free we want it (regardless if we need it or not) and tell everyone else about it. "Are you Dutch or not?!?"

there are a lot of places in Germany that start with "Bad" that are located over thermal spas. my favorite is Baden-Baden in the Black Forest.

people expect me to be short because I am half Dutch, half Indonesian. we are called Indos and there are still quite a few of us around (mostly due to our parents marrying other Indos). I think in the States, Indo refers to India. so anyway, we have a different culture from the regular Caucausian Dutch people.

so other than the Benelux, what are your top 5 dream destinations? I was just going to mention mine, but I realize I already did that in my post to katamari. haha! I do love to travel!

 

[IloveAsschers13]

wellll....

I really really want to go to Alaska right now. My boyfriend's cousin (well actually his grandma's brothers daughter's son.. some sort of cousin) is in the Air force and he is stationed in Alaska, so the crazy thing is it's actually a possibility!!

Then I would love to go to Poland and see all of the WWII memorials and camps, I have always been fascinated with that.

Then I would love to also go to India. My cousin's girlfriend just went there for a human trafficking seminar for two weeks and she just about fell in love.

Hmm two more places? Probably somewhere exotic like the Caribbean.


Last on my list (though I would go here in heartbeat if it was offered!) Would be the Galapagos islands. My cousin is there RIGHT NOW and I am sooo jealous and my roommate from freshman year studied abroad in Ecuador. It just fascinates me how the island is so untouched to the human world (for the most part)

I have been realizing I am kind of a museum junkie and I enjoy learning about the politics and history of an area when I visit which I didn't expect I would.

Well wow, you have traveled a lot of places! I really want to go to Greece to. Was South Africa beautiful? I always think it is funny when people assume because you live in a country you have been to the most popular parts of it. I have never been to Las Vegas OR California.. which you think I would have! I also want to go to Australia and since my uncle is from there, all of his family still lives there so I would have a place to stay woohoo.


What else do you like to do in your spare time? I noticed you said going out to eat was expensive and you cook. What else do you like to do when you guys have free time just around your city? Do you have any pets?

 

[noelwr]

I wouldn''t mind doing a cruise that stops in Alaska. I have absolutely no interest in India. all I can think of is an overcrowded dirty place. I am sure there are very beautiful parts of the country, but for some reason I cannot make myself think it would be worth it. and I have no desire to ever go back to South America. I don''t remember it at all because I left when I was 3, but I also associate it with being very poor. so I guess I am a bit of a travel snob.

South Africa is extremely beautiful, but you also have to deal with the crime and politics when you''re there, unfortunately. I would say don''t go to South Africa without having visited Capetown.

I cook, but I hate it. I don''t really cook during the week. I try to have warm lunches during the day and bread at night (very Dutch, I know). DH buys pizza or something to put in the oven for his dinner. I do the cooking on the weekend, but it''s usually simple stuff as well as I hate slaving over food in the kitchen and that it''s gone in 10 minutes. DH eats VERY fast.

I love to travel (duh!), and I do it as much as I can, but mostly outside Europe. we watch a lot of tv, as I''ve mentioned before, but never Dutch tv because they really have a lot to learn about entertainment. I also love to knit. hobby crafts are not very popular in Holland, so I have to order most of my knitting stuff from the UK. we are very much at-home people and don''t get out much. I think Holland is a very boring place. the only thing we do regularly outside is go to a shooting club in Rotterdam. we''re members, and DH shoots clay-pigeon and I shoot rifle. this is a ridiculously expensive hobby if you compare what you would pay in the States. we don''t have any pets because we live in an apartment. if we ever move into a house, we will get a cat because DH and I both love them. we actually both used to have cats that pretty much looked identical (but this was before we even knew each other).

we also love movies and usually download and watch them at home, unless it''s something really special like Harry Potter or Avatar which we go watch in 3D at the IMAX. we just recently found out that there is an IMAX in Rotterdam. before that we were always going to Amsterdam.

so overall I''m not that exciting a person. pretty much either at the office or at home, and live to travel (be it for work or pleasure). last year I was traveling to Singapore 2 weeks out of every month for about 8 months, but that luckily stopped around May. then we went to Vegas on a pre-honeymoon in Aug and got married in Sep. I went back to Singapore in November, and have been home ever since. next month I''m off to Phoenix.

so what you are your hobbies?

 

[IloveAsschers13]

Ugh reading about the bread is making me wish I was back there.. My favorite food was this one little stand in Maastricht on the main street and I go this amazing sandwich that was fresh mozzarella with pesto and tomatoes.. yummm

I don''t think you are a boring person at all! Traveling is so fulfilling, I think, and it helps people become so much more well-rounded. Or a little crazy in my case

Hmm... hobbies. I love taking pictures. I have the canon rebel xs (I think in Europe it''s the rebel 1000D?) and I LOVE it but I wish I knew how to really use it and take really artistic pictures. I love making jewelry, but I haven''t in a while because I have been so busy with school. A couple years ago, I am sure I would have said that another hobby of mine was babysitting and spending time with kids but I have become truly BURNED OUT form children. I have worked at an in-home daycare for the past 3 years and I am pretty much going crazy. I do love children though (if you ever need a nanny and I move there...

although the maternity leave in the Netherlands is MUCH different than here, I learned) I am in my last year of college and I am so happy to be done.

I also like spending time with my boyfriend. We live together and have for the past 1.5 years. We attend the same college and he is studying business. Luckily, he has the desire to move to Europe as I do, so I''m so happy about that! He is going to study abroad in Russia this summer for 6 weeks. Sounds scary BUT he was born in Russia and is fluent in Russia. Since he moved here when he was 4, he never really learned how to read or write so he has been taking Russian and recently added it as his minor. I''m so excited for him but I wish I could visit him there and it''s sooo expensive.

I''m also an avid reader. I LOVE English and Irish writers- for some reason I tend to gravitate towards them without even trying! I love watching movies as well- what are you favorites? I have probably 300+ DVD''s. My friends come over and borrow them from me all the time since I have so many. My favorite movies include Love Actually, Fight Club, Wanted, Pretty Persuasion, In Her Shoes, my absolute favorite is Hitchhiker''s Guide to the Galaxy, Across the Universe, and Requiem for a Dream. I have tons more but that''s just a snippet. I love musicals too- Mamma Mia, Hairspray, Grease...

We have two cats that are our babies. They are probably another one of my hobbies. I LOVE THEM. We never had animals in my house growing up and as soon as my parents got divorced, my mom went out and bought a cute little dog and I got cats. It''s funny, my dad LOVES my cats and he always says he wishes he would have had animals when we were growing up.

here is a picture of my babies. Louie is the brown and black one and Lucky is the all black one.

 

[IloveAsschers13]

Here is Lucky- She looks like such a wimp. She weighs about 7 lbs.

 

[noelwr]

aw... I love your kitty pictures! we didn''t have pets growing up, but I did have cats when I lived in New Jersey (college in NY). boy, did they want a lot of attention. but the great thing was that whenever I was sad they would come up and cuddle, which was lovely.

I am always impressed with people who work with children. this is going to sound horrible coming from someone who is TTC and I don''t mention it on the Family Forum, but I really don''t like children! however, the reason we are TTC is because I know that I would love my own child like crazy. I just don''t like other people''s kids! not many of our friends have kids, so maybe if a close friend of mine had a kid who was sweet and quiet I might think differently. I went to my colleague''s house to visit her and her baby of 2 months, and she asked if I wanted to hold him, and I was like, "I don''t know how!" I figure that if I ever have a baby, I''ll learn it all on the go. having said all this, I''ll probably have the loudest, naughtiest kid with a bad case of ADD.

what are you studying at college and what kind of career do you hope to have in your future? I studied International Management, but now I''m working in IT and have no ambition to manage a team. management sounded interesting until I actually went into the work force and realized that dealing with people and their problems is really hard! a lot of people bring their personal lives to the office and sometimes it gets too much.

my favorite movies are THE DARK CRYSTAL, AMERICAN BEAUTY, THE PRINCESS BRIDE and any movies with Johnny Depp. the last movie I saw which had me in tears laughing was "THE PINK PANTHER" with Steve Martin (2006). we also have a large collection of movies, but DH stopped burning them on DVD, especially now that we download everything in HD so it stays in the computer library. we recently watched SHERLOCK HOLMES and that was a bit of a disappointment. really weird role for RD Jr. we enjoyed DISTRICT 9, even though some people say it was really predictable.

I also like musicals. my favorite song in GREASE was "There Are Worse Things I Could Do" sung by Stockard Channing. I didn''t like the new FAME, but HAIRSPRAY with John Travolta and Christopher Walken was funny (I remember the original with Ricki Lake). I love the tv show GLEE. do you ever watch that? needless to say I''ve also seen the HIGH SCHOOL MUSICALs.

I like to mostly read books for teenagers. CATCHER IN THE RYE was very good. I also love Robert Cormier''s THE CHOCOLATE WAR. I loved reading the Hitchikers series, but didn''t like the movie that much. not a fave of mine, but I''m guessing you''ve read James Joyce. I saw the musical THE DEAD when living in New York and Christopher Walken was in it! he wasn''t a good singer.

 

[IloveAsschers13]

I am going into teaching. I have been working with kids since I was 12 (babysitting) and then professionally, as in daycares, since I was 16. Here in the US, I think it's a little bit different working at daycares and preschools- a lot of times you can get jobs there without having a degree. Some daycares require you to have a degree in early childhood, but 2 of the daycares that had actual preschools in them didn't have any requirements. Now I am 22, so I have been working with children for 10 years. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE little kids and any child under 18 months I practically melt just looking at, but boy, am I getting sick of being around them all the time! Sometimes I find myself in arguments with some of them (one boy in particular) and I get so mad, so I have to stop and say to myself, "You are arguing with a 4-year-old, at the level of 4-year-old. Stop" Ha but overall, I do love teaching kids and I do have a lot of patience that people tend not to have. I am going into younger elementary teaching as in ages 6-11 but I really want to teach middle school, which is about ages 12-14.

That's actually why I was in the Netherlands when I went. It was a study abroad and we were studying how the school system is much different in Germany, the Netherlands, and the US. In Germany and the Netherlands, you have a tracking system that is not so obvious here. You have a ton of different tracks as well (VMBO, HBO, HAVO, I'm sure you already know!

) and in the US, children can go to the same school no matter what they are studying to be when they grow up. I can go more into it if you ever want, but that's the gist of it. My dream is to be a teacher in Europe, anywhere. There are a lot of military/army bases that the US has there as well as international schools that like having native English speakers, and I really like the atmosphere of living when I was visiting Europe. A lot of people have warned me that it's extremely romanticized since I was only staying there for a little while and I'm sure I will fall into a pattern of waking up going to work, going to bed as I do here, I just would love the chance to actually experience living in another country.

I LOVE the Dark Crystal and Labirynth! I also like Johnny Depp movies, although Blow is probably my favorite along with Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. I kind of refuse to see Sherlock Holmes based on the fact that my grandfather is actually a "Sherlockian" who knows anything and everything about Sherlock Holmes and I would rather here the stories from him and get his movies than see a beefed-up Blockbuster Sherlock. My sister loves the show Glee but last semester I think that I had a class during the time it was on, and I never watched it although I probably will watch it once it comes out on DVD.

I think Christopher Walken is hilarious. Have you ever seen the Saturday Night live from a few years back he was in? It was so funny. I heard there is going to be a Hairspray 2, that I am not so sure about.

p.s. I know a lot of people who never liked children and they do love their own.

Also, my kitties are VERY low-maintenance. They like attention but not annoyingly so. Lucky is part Siamese, so it's hilarious- she literally talks to us all the time. Not meow, but making talking noises. So cute.

ETA- Have you ever seen the show Intervention? AWESOME show. The "Allison" episode is the most shocking episode I have ever seen. I just thought of it because it's on right now.

 

[noelwr]

I really admire your patience with kids and wanting to pursue a career that surrounds you by them all day. I actually don''t mind teenagers, as I find them easier to be around. maybe that''s why I also like teenage books. I went to an American school, but I do understand the Dutch system a little bit. do you by any chance know what happens at the college/university level? my understanding is that so many students want to study medicine and law that application is based on a lottery system. but do their grades not count for something? I remember about 6 years ago I thought I might want to go study archaeology in Leiden (become an Egyptologist), and I went to speak to one of the professors. I asked him about enrolling and would they need my college to send my transcripts, and he said that in Holland everyone is allowed to study whatever they want so that wouldn''t be necessary. anyway, I didn''t end up studying archaeology because it would have been impossible with a full time job. 6 years later, I''m quite happy that the end of my work day is really the end of the day and I don''t have to go home and study, write papers, etc.

that''s so weird - I thought I was the only person in the world who likes the DARK CRYSTAL. I remember the LABYRINTH with David Bowie! I seem to be into muppet type movies... I also love MUPPET''S CHRISTMAS CAROL! and I used to be into FRAGGLE ROCK. we recently watched WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE and I didn''t like it. I also don''t remember the book, so maybe that''s why. my favorite Johnny Depp movie is "DON JUAN DEMARCO" and I love the Bryan Adams waltz that goes with it. I didn''t know people who know everything about S Holmes are called "Sherlockians". that''s cool. I think Intervention would make me cry. I don''t like watching tv shows that make me cry. reality tv shows I like are ones that show people''s talents, like So You Think You Can Dance and American Idol. I wish they would only show the good singers in the American Idol auditions.

what was that skit Christopher Walken used to do... "The Continental"? where the camera would be the woman he was trying to seduce and she would keep trying to run away from him. hilarious! we watch SNL and sometimes it''s hard for us to follow because we don''t always keep up with U.S. news. I did like last weekend''s "Hamm and Bublé" skit. I miss the days of Cheri Oteri and Will Farell. Tiny Fey and Amy Poehler. Mike Myers and Dana Carvey...

wow, I didn''t know cats make talking sounds other than "meow".

 

[IloveAsschers13]

Hmm, I just asked the man who was in charge of our study abroad (he is in the Netherlands actually

) about it to get more information as I think it's interesting too! Yes, I am scared about doing exactly what you said, about coming home and doing more work (which I know is the norm for teachers) but also if I ever pursue my masters, I know that will be a ton of work. Wow an Egyptianologist? I have honestly never heard of that. Sounds interesting. I love history- that's another thing that I wish I could have studied although I am so close to being done it's not worth it to switch now. I am in an American Sign Language class right now and I am REALLY enjoying that. So interesting!

I didn't see Where the Wild Things are but I didn't really like the book a lot. We had to study it in one of my children's literature classes and I think I completely over-analyzed it and now I don't really like it. Also, my mom used to only read us books she liked when we were kids and I know she did not like that book at all. ha

I like shows that will make me cry. A lot of times it makes me cry, but from happiness. They are addicted to drugs or alc, etc, and a lot of times they get better. One of the episodes I just saw the father ended up drying of cancer and I will admit I was crying like a baby.

I also love the SNL with Chris Farley and Adam Sandler etc.. funny when my aunt was in college, her boyfriend was roommates with Chris Farley! Big partier (no surprise there

]

Eh, I am not that into American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance, although I am always in awe of their talent when I do watch it. A classmate of mine from high school, Evan, made it the top 3 last season and he was AWESOME. He has always been a great dance. In terms of reality shows i LOVE Biggest Loser (watching it right now) and I LOVE Teen Mom on MTV. True Life on MTV is a favorite of mine too. I am so excited for new seasons of Nurse Jackie and United States of Tara as well! You could say I am a bit of a tv junkie too.

Oh my cat- she makes more or a brrrr noise, like if you roll your tongue. My cats also do this clicking sound to each other when they are playing with the laser pointer- they sound like aliens. They open their mouths and literally make small clicking noises and pounce on the point etc. Such cuties. It's hard to capture it on my camera because it's so quiet. I have had my friends come over and see it too and they are a bit freaked out.

ETA- Do you and your husband have any hobbies that you really like to do? My boyfriend is really into cars and although I think it's awesome and I am always shocked at how smart he is, but I just do not find it interesting. I like going to things there the cars are all tricked out and stuff like that but he is mostly on his own with that. He also likes playing hockey and once in a while we go ice skating together. We also love going out to eat.