Month: August 2009

This morning early, I started out with a birdie, par, par, par. I'd built up a fine feeling that today was my day and there was nothing out there that could stop me.

Until at least the endless waves of slow-pokes ahead of me kept blocking my way and making me wait. They just wouldn't let me through, which got me feeling more and more frustrated. There's nothing worse for a good streak than having it abruptly stopped by a foursome of old men looking for balls.

So I asked if I could pass and the guy that looked like the leader of the slow-pokes gave me a frown. After a slight pause of having to think it over, he grumbled as if I'd been impolite: sure you can pass us.

I nailed my drive but struck some branches above them without yelling fore.

Since it was early morning, the sun was glaring in my eyes and I couldn't see where the ball has going. It felt like I smacked the ball pretty good, so that's why I was surprised when I heard the crackling of wood, and saw the branches and leaves falling on top of those poor sods. The ball must have faded more than I had reckoned it would.

The four poor folks scrambling in all directions like they were under some kind of artillery attack.

That's when I felt like just forgetting it all and I quit for the day. I'd have to repeat my amazing performance another day.

I learned a couple of valuable lessons: start before eight if you want to beat the crowd, and when in doubt always yell fore.

The fact that this entry exists is proof that my Vodafone Mobile Connect Card driver for Linux is working from the speeding train.

The thing doesn't work ideally, but after restarting the program and re-inserting the USB-stick a couple of times, I can connect and fire up my browser.

One advantage is that my one hour trip goes by in a flash, or so it seems. Must be careful I do not miss my stop.

When the train stops running, it is no less than pure chaos which blocks me every which way I turn.

What normally takes around fifty minutes, became a grueling three hours plus this evening.

I had to get off at Bijlmer, go back to Duivendrecht, change trains at Schiphol and then transfer at Den Haag before I finally made it back to Gouda.

Although I did my best to relax and not get stressed about the delays, I've developed a pretty bad headache.

The good thing is that I felt thankful when I finally made it back home, and that my dinner tasted ten times better than normal.

Tomorrow is another day of traveling and coming back home (hopefully) in time.

We survived a wonderful two weeks in the sunny and hot climate of Costa Brava, Spain. We stayed 12 days at the fancy L'Àmfora camping and bungalow park. The time spent there was restful and gave us the opportunity to recharge our batteries and prepare ourselves for the rest of the year.

Pictures

How we traveled (1,398 km):

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