Holy carp! Amazon.co.jp is -fast-!

2008-12-29 19:06:00

The title says it all: Amazon.co.jp is fast! Mindbogglingly fast o_O

On the 23rd I'd put in an order for an art book that was shipped on the 24th. I took the normal/cheap shipping option, which in the US version usually means it'll take three weeks to reach us. Not now though! The book arrived in the mail today! That's five days, as opposed to twenty! Holy crap!

EDIT:
Oh... =_= Reading comprehension ++

Apparently the Express method is the only one they offer international customers. That would explain why it was so fast... Still, I'm happy! ^_^

kilala.nl tags: japan, internet,

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Man, it sure is nippy!

2008-12-28 10:25:00

Brrr *shiver* Man, it sure is pretty chilly in here... Outside it's a sunny yet humid -3C and for some reason our heater just doesn't seem to be able to do much about it. I've turned on most of the radiators (which will surely lower the efficiency of heating our house) and the furnace is up to 5 (max=7), but it still isn't toasty in here. I still need a blanky to get comfortable and even Dana's moaning and griping under her blankets. :/

kilala.nl tags: winter, house,

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A Christmas like most others

2008-12-27 18:43:00

Heh! Just like in the past few years Christmas was a fun time with our families, but it was far from relaxing ^_^ There was the usual bickering, there was the hectical preparation for the big dinner and of course there's also the huge amount of stuff we needed to haul around the country to accomodate Dana.

Ah, but still... It was good to have all the family together, dinner was great and Dana seemed quite happy with all of the attention, despite all the fuss. I also spent a few hours with step-father-in-law Dirk, flexing my PHP/MySQL muscles to help him set up a dynamic site for the local fierljeppen team.

So... It might not have been 100% relaxation, but at least it was 0% work. Holidays can be good to get things off your mind :)

kilala.nl tags: holiday, family, relaxing,

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Janus Privacy Adapter

2008-12-23 22:15:00

Via Clint: The janus team have published a preview of their new privacy adapter. it's a small two port router. you just plug it in-line between your computer/switch and your internet connection. it will then anonymize all of you traffic via the tor network. you can also use it with openvpn.

I'd never heard of JanusVM before, but it seems that the team's been working on security and privacy software for Windows and Linux for quite a while now. This little piece of hardware looks very useful for when you're working in an untrusted network!

JanusPA sneak peek.

kilala.nl tags: other tech, sysadmin,

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QR Codes, pretty useful even for us laymen

2008-12-23 18:35:00

This evening I ran into an interesting report on the use of QR codes (Wikipedia) in Japan. I've known about QR codes for a few years now, but I've finally found a use for them :) For example, on the left you'll see the matrix that contains my contact information. I plan on having that printed on my next run of business cards. On the one hand it'll make a nice conversation piece and on the other it might actually be useful!

My second idea is based on the second film clip in the news article. As the report shows, people are storing their medical information in a QR code, which they always keep at hand. I already have a memo card in my wallet with my personalia in both english and japanese, but it couldn't hurt to have a list of my conditions and prescriptions in QR as well.

Interesting links:
* QR code @ Kaywa, an online generator.
* Kaywa reader, a decoder for your mobile.
* 2D sense, a decoder for your iPhone.
* i-Nigma creator, another online generator with good options.

kilala.nl tags: other tech,

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Uhoh, this can't be good

2008-12-22 21:32:00

Oh dear. Exasperated by the electrical wiring I'd been trying to fix for half an hour and by the tools that I didn't fully understand I muttered under my breath: My soul for a house where these things just fscking work!. Immediately things snapped into place and I got the wiring done.

Should you suddenly find me gone in a puff of smoke and sulphur, you'll at least know what happened =_=;

kilala.nl tags: not good, house, weird,

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A chance encounter while studying

2008-12-22 21:24:00

By following a course in LDAP on Monday and Tuesday I've essentially ensured that I have a full week of vacation, what with Christmas right around the bend. Of course any IT course is hard work so calling it a true vacation is going a bit far, but let's say that the change of scenery makes for a nice change ^_^ I'm following the course at AT Computing in Utrecht, which is a fifteen minutes' bike ride from our home. It's great to just hop on my bike and be at "my" desk after short, but brisk ride. So far the course's been very educational, so I'm enjoying myself. What's made my day though is a chance encounter with something I've been wanting to meet for years now. You see, in the corner of the break room at ATC there's an ancient PDP-11/45 from 1972. Apparently the system's seen thirteen uninterrupted years of service at the university of Nijmegen, where it was decommissioned in 1986. Impressive!

I've always had admiration for systems from that era, especially after reading Tracy Kidder's The soul of a new machine. Computers that, to our modern eyes, are humongous beasts filled to the brim with PCBs and wiring... *heart* It's systems like these that make me think that I was born thirty years too late <3

kilala.nl tags: studying, work, awesome,

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Development site up and running

2008-12-22 06:47:00

Okay! It seems that after a long bout of poking and tweaking and reloading I've gotten the .DEV site to work again... Now! Let's get cracking at that new version :) I reckon it'll take me a few weeks to get everything the way I want it to be. For now let's focus on the code... I'll tackle all the tags at a later point in time.

kilala.nl tags: programming,

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This may be problematic: I still care

2008-12-21 17:11:00

Mmmm... I once left a job because management had told me to stop caring about my job. Not in so many words, but that's what it boiled down to. "Give up that fight" and "the higher-ups will never accept the right thing" were enough for me to want to move on because I did not want to give up. At the time I thought I was in the right (I still do) and I wasn't about to accept bad decisions and solutions in "my" server park. So I left.

That was years ago and since then I've seen various jobs and assignments. IMNSHO I've matured a bit and in general I can deal better with suits. I've become jaded enough to take things easier and to care less about how hower levels of management handle things. Or so I thought.

Thanks to Marli I discovered this weekend that I -do- still care... Maybe a bit too much. That and apparently my ingrained distrust of management is still there as well, since I automatically assume things about my higher-ups which I haven't gotten confirmed yet. So after a chat with her and Menno I've decided to do two things.

1. Speak with my higher-ups in person, as opposed to relying solely on e-mail. This is ironic, since I've been recommending this very same thing since early 2007 to everyone else ^_^;

2. Accept the limits of my sphere of influence. I've done what I can, so now I have to either rely on the willingness of others to help, or to accept that it's out of my hands.

*sigh* Changing's difficult :)

kilala.nl tags: work, problem,

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Dana's developing her language skills

2008-12-15 21:16:00

Just this week I've noticed new changes in Dana's behaviour :) For starters we heard her very first real laughing this weekend. And I'm not talking about a moderate eheh-heh-he either. Nope! It started out with a few grins and smiles, but proceeded into honest-to-$DEITY laughing back and forth with Marli.

During a diaper change it also occurred to me that she's also added new letters to her vocab. There's l's, m's, b's and w's, and even an i or a u! So now she's capable of forming such coherent sentences as behh-ha-webrl meh ^_^

kilala.nl tags: baby, body,

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Mmm, more indulgence! Nespresso

2008-12-15 21:03:00

My darling wiffums surprised me yesterday with a nifty present! Let's call it an early Christmas present, to justify the splurge ^_^ At the office I'd tried Nespresso coffee a few times and was damn well impressed by its quality. I'd expected the portion-packed espresso machine's performance to be as lackluster as that of the Philips' Senseo, but that dread was completely baseless. The coffee actually tastes great and packs a wallop! So... After singing Nespresso's praises a few times at home Marli reckoned I'd love to have a machine of my own. Of course I would, though I really couldn't ratify the expense. Hence the surprise when she came home with the Magimix m100 Essenza! It's quite a lovely machine, which feels solid and well built. The included pack of twelve coffee portions also gives us a chance to try out the different flavours. Tonight I had the Arpeggio, which is the next-to-strongest roast in the range. Man, my nose is still twitching! What a punch :D I reckon I'd better drink this stuff in the mornings <3

I also have to add that Nespresso understand marketing very well. Their boutiques exude an atmosphere of luxury and quality, making you feel like you're buying something that's giving you bang for your buck. I'd actually go as far as to say that their boutiques rival or even exceed the Apple stores!

kilala.nl tags: coffee, drinks, awesome,

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Indulging myself with a yummy lunch

2008-12-15 14:04:00

Ever since I first visited a Coco Ichibanya curry house in Japan I've been a big fan of curries. Not the lovely Indian dish, but the variation thereof that those wacky Japanese cooked up. I'd been craving a good curry for months now, and today I finally indulged myself ^_^

I had lunch with my colleague Oliver over in Zuid-WTC at Wagamama. They might serve food at dutch prices (ie "not cheap"), but it was pretty damn good! :9 The miso soup sucked a bit (bland) though.

kilala.nl tags: restaurant, japan,

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A rather quiet "open house"

2008-12-13 16:59:00

To aid us in selling our apartment we took part in our realtor's "open house". We were asked to make the house presentable to potential buyers and to be available between the hours of one and three. Unfortunately only one guy showed up, who was moderately interested.

Oh well... At least our house is tidier than it's been for weeks ^_^;

kilala.nl tags: house,

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New manga I'd like to get my hands on: Alps Hiroba

2008-12-13 01:43:00

Recently I've been following a number of blogs on Japan and current developments in the otaku culture surrounding Akiba and so on. One of these blogs alerted me (partially NSFW) of a very new manga called Shin Shinjukueki Kikakuka: Alps Hiroba. Apparently it's a comedy about a young and highly motivated tetsu otome ("iron maiden"), ie a railway attendant. Seeing how I'm nuts about the Japanese railway system I'd love to just leaf through this book ^_^ Maybe I should ask Niels-sama to bring it back from his next trip to Japan. Seriously, the book costs less than five euros anyway.

kilala.nl tags: manga, japan,

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Spoke to my GP: nothing new, just reassurances

2008-12-13 01:35:00

As I mentioned earlier I had a meeting with my GP to talk about my bouts with hyperventilation. She couldn't tell me anything new and just confirmed what we already knew/expected.

* While the redness of my skin might suggest an allergy, the lack of any real welts takes this possibility away. It's not an allergic attack.
* These attacks are brought on by stress or anxiety.
* The fact that 90% of my attacks happen while I'm sleeping actually supports this: in your sleep (and while dreaming) your body copes with most of the stress you've been going through.
* We're dealing with these issues to our best capabilities. We know what to do if it happens and so far we seem to be successful in staving off any real disasters.
* The doc assumes that things will automatically get better once I find some more peace in my life.
* The doc suggests picking up some -really- relaxing activities, like sports. I add yoga and meditation to the list. I might also pick up running again.

So there you have it... For now I'm stuck with this hyperventilating, but at least I can cope with it properly.

kilala.nl tags: hyperventilation, health,

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A big decision: moving to the country

2008-12-10 20:14:00

Borrowed from Wikipedia.

Remember this one? Or this one? Or how about this one? We've been thinking about moving away from the big cities for a while now and we've finally made our decision: We're moving to the province of Drenthe. As you can see from the map on the left, the province of Utrecht is one of the most densely populated areas in the Netherlands (after Zuid Holland and Noord Holland). We've lived in Utrecht all of our lives and we've had it pretty damn good. Our houses in Nieuwegein and Utrecht (the city) were both comfortable and they suited our needs. And living in the city we always had the benefit of all kinds of shops and facilities nearby. Now that I'm nearing my thirties and Dana's joined our family things look different though. We want to have a nice, big house that'll last us at least ten years (and possibly a second child). Since we'll be living off of my wages alone said house needs to be affordable, leaving us enough money for food, upkeep and savings. And since housing prices in the deep red provinces on the map suck we've decided to try our luck elsewhere. Flevoland (the island in the middle) doesn't offer us much interesting because I particularly dislike the cities over there. Housing is a bit more affordable than elsewhere, but it doesn't help much that Almere is atrociously ugly :/ And since we've always like the countryside of Friesland and Drenthe, we've decided to move to the latter!

We've been browsing Funda for a few days now and even when limiting our search to the southwest of Drenthe there's more than two hundred houses to pick from! Houses within our budget that is... Right now we're eyeballing a house that's close to my in-laws, close to an Intercity railway station and close to both schools and a forest. It's about 130m2, has five rooms and two bathrooms. The kitchen looks alright, as do the two yards and the terrace. All of that rings in at around 190k, which is only 40k more than what we paid for our 80m2, first floor apartment.

Unfortunately there are a few downsides to living in Drenthe, the largest being the distance I need to travel for my daily commute. By moving further east I'm limiting the area that I can work in quite a bit. Quite severely actually, since most of the really big IT jobs are in the outmost west of the Netherlands. One could say that Amsterdam and Utrecht are about as far west as I could go to find jobs, while the west coast is my current limit. Oh well...

The other downside is that we'd be moving further away from all of our friends (except you Kaijuu, you'd be right around the corner!) and our family. But then again, the house'll be big enough to have a guest room, so hey! ^_^

It's a pretty big decision to make, but I do believe it's a good one.

kilala.nl tags: house, family, netherlands,

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I've had it! Definitely meeting my GP this week

2008-12-07 21:18:00

Damn, I've had it with this stuff... I'm definitely making an appointment with my GP this week. Saturday night was the fifth bout of hyperventilation this quarter and the third (!!) time in a month's time. Fsck >( EDIT: I thought I'd chart the amount of hyperventilation attacks I've had in the past years; might be handy when talking to the doc que no? Well, things look worse than I remembered them to be. :/

kilala.nl tags: hyperventilation, health, meh,

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Dana's doing fine

2008-12-07 21:01:00

Dana's almost three months old now and she's doing pretty well *knock on wood* ^_^ She's grown a bit and she's definitely put on some weight. So far she's pretty healthy without any real problems popping up. She's sleeping fine and letting us sleep at night as well. Yep, so far Dana's a pretty happy baby :)

Heads up for the family and friends with access: there's new pictures in the gallery.

kilala.nl tags: baby, health,

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A short holiday trip to Drenthe

2008-12-07 20:58:00

This weekend I "surprised" Marli with a weekend in the country, just to get away from it all. I'd taken the Friday off so we could take care of all the household chores in a hurry, letting us leave for the province of Drenthe around one. I'd rented a nice cottage at the Kuierpadtien camping park, which came at a nice price since it's off-season. Incidentally, the area we visited this weekend is also where my dad used to go on holidays with his parents back in the fifties (or was it the sixties?). Wezuperbrug is home to about 200 people and is kind of stuck in the middle of nowhere, along with a few other small villages. We loved it :)

We really didn't do very much this weekend, but that's why it was so relaxing. No Internet, no work, no household work, just the three of us and nothing to tie us down. We had a nice dinner, we had breakfast together for the first time in a year and we made a small visit to the tiny town of Orvelte. Orvelte was voted number five in the list of the Netherlands' prettiest towns and it does live up to this! We arrived around 0930, mist still hanging thick in the air, with the town still quiet and peaceful.

I've mentioned before how we'd love to move to the country and Drenthe is one of the places we've been eyeing. The scenery's just lovely over there and the housing prices are just insanely low. We just checked out a real estate site and seriously: the difference in what you get for 200k between the provinces of Utrecht/Flevoland and Drenthe comes down to two rooms and about fifty m^2. Holy crap! Ie 4-5 rooms @100m2 versus 6-7 rooms @150m2. That's making things -very- tempting.

kilala.nl tags: holiday, relaxing, netherlands,

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Now that's an expensive shot

2008-12-07 20:06:00

The photograph above looks pretty nice, but it's also one of the most expensive shots I ever took. Right before I made it I fumbled my iPhone, which promptly fell on the brick path I was walking. The case has split open on one side and the lower left corner of the screen has cracked. ;_;

Early morning in Drenthe sure looks nice though.

kilala.nl tags: photos, iphone, snafu,

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Isn't it ironic? Home maintenance put off till the end

2008-12-01 19:18:00

For the past two years I've been staring at the holes in our ceiling and the electrical wiring hanging out of them. We had to hang the lamps and the ceiling fan off-center and thus the original connection points were left unused. Now that we're trying to sell our apartment we need to finally fix these things as they don't really look nice on the realtor's photograps ^_^;

Isn't it ironic how work left undone for two years can be done in two hours and only set me back about thirty euros? *le sigh* It actually even looks pretty okay.

kilala.nl tags: house, weird,

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