Blogging from Amsterdam?

I've been here over a month now, without my trusty Nikon but with my phone camera. And of course it's Amsterdam so of course surrealities abound.

Should I blog them? Or carry on like all the other cloggies like this stuff is normal?

Vote now!

Not sweary enough apparently

Mingle² - Online Dating

I'm deeply disappointed. Given that I was the sweariest person on #london.pm for a long time I need to cut the bullshit and get the fucking lead out on my blog.

Mash the lemon, split the leather...

You had to be there. Spinal Tap meets Amsterdam...

Google knows all

Googling to check that an old colleague's address was the same, the top hit was acutally a list of emails and addresses that looked like a direct dump from a mailer. Clicking on a link on that page brought me to a PDF of a dump from an Outlook address book. Which includes credit card numbers, assorted utility account numbers and PIN codes and so on.

For a lawyer.

Not good, folks.

5 hour sunset

5 hour sunset
Originally uploaded by davehodg

Flying out of LHR at 2030, there was a purty sunset which lasted 5 hours as we chased it across the Atlantic. Worringly, it was out of the right (starboard!) window which I'm assuming was the North. I guess I could work out the geometry of it if I could be bothered.

Still, it was lovely.

KLM suck

Just registering a point on the suckometer.

0755 to LCY cancelled for "technical reasons". Shyeah. Routed onto 1015 to LHR.

Luggage going via Miami presumably.

Stupid Blogger language default

Just because I'm *in* Holland, doesn't mean I want the Blogger interface in Dutch. Especially as my gmail login knows damn well who I am and where I'm from.

This also leads to weirdness like the popup over "BERICHT PUBLICEREN" being "Now Blogger saves your drafts automatically!"

Sorry Billy, please re-post your comment on the 7 ages of rock blog!

Shame on you Blogger losing Billy's comment.

BBC Seven Ages of Rock: Heavy Metal

An entertaining romp through the history of metal, touching on all the important stuff from Sabbath, Purple of Course, Priest, Maiden, Motley Crue and Metallica.

One BIG gripe: metal did NOT end with Metallica. It might have gone through one if its regular dormant periods in the 90's while grunge had a quick play, much like punk was allowed to in the 70's, but since the turn of the millenium, metal has exploded again with genres and subcultures drawing from the original roots. I should know, I've been involved with a load! From Goth-metal through Metalcore to epic Scandi-metal, the genre is completely alive and well. The Download festival I'm missing is testament to that.

See you at Wacken Open Air in August!

Wet

It's been horribly sweaty today, even more so on the train back from Utrecht which got diverted via Hilversum and was packed and sweaty and ended up at the Central Station. As I was walking from the tram stop to my flat, the heavens opened with a huge electrical storm. In a hundred yards, I was drenched to the skin. Hopefully it's cleared the air!

Do I look like a local then?

Wandering around Amsterdam this evening, I've been asked directions no less than THREE times by lost tourists.

I suppose I should be flattered.