Month: August 2001

You'll never guess who I talked to the other day. Alfred Nakatsuma, an old Stanford buddy from years and years ago. The last time I saw him was more than fifteen years ago when he visited me in Amsterdam when we were living in a monument house next to the Singel Canal. Wow, that's a long time ago or so it seems. The other day I received an email from Alfred who was in India. He would be in Amsterdam for four hours at Schiphol Airport in transit back to the States. He did not know when that would be exactly which made it difficult to plan seeing each other, but he would give me a call anyway. So early Thursday morning when I was still in bed the phone rang. It was good old Alfred after all these years. How you doing, I'm fine, that kind of stuff. Brief, casusal, slightly superficial, but really great to hear his voice again after all these years. No use trying to recount everything that has happened in the last fifteen years, but what to say? Before I realized it we had talked about ten minutes and the telephone line went dead. Boom, the last coin had been used up probably. Good-bye and let's keep in touch.

Hangup - "A hangup, also called a hang, is a condition that sometimes occurs when computer programs conflict or do not run properly. The computer seems paralyzed. Clicking the mouse has no effect, regardless of where the arrow or cursor is placed. Sometimes a hangup will resolve itself. In some instances, the loading of a large amount of data (for example, downloading a complex Web page) can appear as a hangup. If you see an hourglass symbol, you should wait a couple of minutes before concluding that the system is hung up. But if the pointer appears and you cannot get a response by clicking on anything or by striking various keys on the keyboard, you will have to terminate the application or reboot the computer. Pressing CTRL, ALT, and DEL at the same time (the so-called three-finger salute) will usually allow you to exit the program in question. If this does not work, you can deliver the three-finger salute twice in rapid succession, and the computer should reboot. This is called a warm boot. You will lose all data in memory in this case. Sometimes even this does not work. In the extreme, it will be necessary to power-down the computer and then power-up again (a cold boot). This is a last resort, because it will cause the operating system to shut down improperly, and this action can produce hard-drive errors." I have taken the liberty to snatch this from the whatis website, a fine place for just about every definition you would ever need.

While it has been nearly a year ago since my father passed away, I still often think about him. Without warning, he pops up in my mind and this vision causes me to become sentimental about the past. Usually he is younger, about the age when I was a kid, and in his face I am reminded of a number of qualities which I feel I have acquired from him. Subconsciously as well as physical. A brief glimpse, and just as suddenly as he appeared, he fades away. Way deep inside I feel a little sad, especially when I am reminded of the last days I spent at his bedside in the hospital. He wanted to tell me something but couldn't because of that lousy breathing tube in his throat. Damn, if I had only arrived a couple of days earlier, or if he had picked up the telephone when I called at the beginning of the week, he could have told me something perhaps. Oh well, I will have to wait a few more years before I meet him in person to find out what it was if anything.

I cannot believe that the author Ray Bradbury has recently turned 80. Seems like just yesterday that as a young reader I was so overly impressed by his books "The Illustrated Man" and "The Martian Chronicles". I think I was around 12 years old. Time flies, doesn't it? I wonder what life will be like at age eighty.

Here is my horoscope for today: "Seek a secure connection in a random world. Charm is a survival skill, but it works best when logic and foresight are fully engaged. A prize is more significant if you've worked hard to earn it." Normally I do not believe in horoscopes, but for some reason this message hits a chord deep within me. And why is that so?

Right now I am back at the office. Just a few moments to waste time blogging again. Actually I should not be doing this during work hours, but I am anyway. Today it is Thursday, meaning that I have only six more days to (try to) be productive. That's hard. In a way I feel sentimental about the surroundings, having worked at CMG Wireless Data Solutions now for nearly four and a half years. I get along well with my colleagues but not with the management. The work is interesting at the forefront of the mobile telecommunications technology, but that is not enough to keep a good man busy. New challenges are required and aggravations need to be quelled. An escape? Could be. Don't forget that wherever you go, wherever you choose to work and pursue, unfortunately you bring yourself along. On September first I will be starting at a new IT company (Dutch) called IQUIP. Good luck and see you later. Have to write up some more (boring) documents.

Just got back from Valras Plage in the wonderful world of Southern France. About 1300 kilometers non-stop all the way back to good old Gouda. That's more than 14 hours cramped in the car -- fortunately we have air-conditioning. After nine days as Beach-combers francaise at the scorching Mediterranean beachfront, we have returned with wonderfully almost black suntans. Now it is midnight and time to go to bed.