Month: March 2014

The beauty of golf is that even after years and years of experience you still can learn something new every day. Here's a tip I happened to pick up while watching golf on the television.

When you are in the sand trap and the sand is soft, it's recommended that you dig into the sand by wiggling your feet to sink down and get a firmer stance. A subtle side effect of this approach is that you end up slightly deeper below the ball compared to a normal stance on firm ground.

In order to compensate this sinking below the ball you need to adjust your grip by choking down slightly, resulting in an inch or two to the top of the grip being exposed above your left hand.

For optimal effect this distance should be exactly equal to the amount your feet have sunk down in the sand. You take a normal swing except that you're gripping lower and the arc is at a sharper angle. You need to strike the ball at the point just above the spot where the level of sand meets the surface of the ball.

Hitting a ball smoothly out of a sand trap taking just the right amount of sand with it is a fantastic feeling.

The key to faster technological progress is the more widespread use of free software. While computers and the Internet have already changed many aspects of our lives, we still live in the dark ages of computing because proprietary software is still the dominant model.

After the Software Wars by Keith Curtis

This is what I recently posted next to the front door for all of my team members to see whenever they walk in or out of the room. For me it is imperative that everyone realize what the true definition of done is. That way we can better refrain from cutting corners and releasing stuff too early. Basically it is a simple and straight forward checklist to help us do our work better by avoiding the most common pitfalls of software development.

Ideal climate early March inspired me to get up extra early on a Sunday morning to play a round of golf by myself. Too bad I bogied three of the first four holes, but the wonderful nature around me soothed away the slight disappoints. For the first time this year a double-bogie-less round, no birdies though. In total seven bogies and the rest pars for a 39+39=78.

Early morning and ready to head out to the golf course. The morning weather is perfect and the sky is blue. After my shower I'm feeling energetic and am only slightly stiffer than usual. I bend down slowly and reach out with my right arm, the goal being to lift up the carry bag containing my clothes. Before my hand gets even half way, something in the lower right half of my back pops. Just above the hip towards my third lumbar. Or is it my second lumbar? Feels like it makes some sound, but I do not hear anything. I think oops and freeze in mid-air afraid to move any further. The pain has not yet been triggered, but it will come. I slowly stand back up and then it hits me. Oops double whammy this time. I was really looking forward to a great round of golf and look at me now. Oh well, better luck next time. Four days later and the soreness is receding somewhat, but I still need to be careful. Next weekend I'll be ready to go and shoot a record round of golf.

One may wonder what the evolutionary advantage would for being negative in life. Complaining and criticizing at the drop of a hat, blaming others and denigrating your neighbors for no other reason except that they are not exactly the same as you. I am often amazed at how many grumpy and negative people there are out there. Giving up because of obstacles which are not their fault. The food is awful, it costs too much, you cannot trust that guy, what a bunch of snobs, can you believe how stupid she is. Being fixated on how unfair life is and shunning a loving and caring God above because life sucks. Many people thrive on complaining and criticizing, energizing themselves by greedily sucking in that dark energy, hating all around as if their survival depended on it. An outside observer would conclude that this is a necessary mode of human instinct, introduced after millions of years evolution so that the human race can last through tragedy and other terrible events. This could very well be the most important reason why civilization has existed to this very day despite the contrary. Looking back through history, there are many examples of irrational behavior supporting this theory. A good excuse for going to war and destroying your enemies. Distracting the attention away from internal strife and insecurity by unfairly projecting your weaknesses on others, because you are too weak to admit it yourself. Do not look at me because I am pointing at the truly evil one standing over there. See what I mean, it's all their fault not mine.

Today we packed up all of Sabien's belongings into the car, drove up to Amsterdam and helped her move into her new student apartment.

Although I felt somewhat sad and know I will miss her very much, I am also very happy for her. She is moving on with her life, becoming independent from us and growing quickly into a young woman we are proud of.

She is the third one to move out of the house. Lennart in the west (The Hague), Marlies in the south (Maastricht) and now Sabien in the north (Amsterdam).

Only one more to go, so I will cherish the time with Maarten while I can.