This site is down contemporary

My dear FiF readers! As my closest followers know, technologically I am almost amish. I am connected 9h to pc and internet at work, often more, so I never felt the need to install any lines at my home. I don’t even have cable tv. For private matters I used my office pc – correctly outside of paid hours.
Anyway, my company installed sever filters, which means that I am cut out to the wwworld until I don’t find another way to enter. And thus, FiF is down – contemporary.
I created this side over a year ago while I was in another company. We were a bunch of expat students and my inbox was loaded with the usual “see this on youtube” and “forward this funny pictures” – you get the picture. I found this really annoying but I thought, too, that in some way I had to return all these mails, because in the end, these guys tried to make me laugh during the day and hey, I needed it! So I saved the best I came across in internet during the week and prepared a Finally-its-Friday-email every Friday that shortly after became a blog. The spirit was always the same: make people feel better.
I hope you enjoyed it and come back when I’ll make my comeback. Thanks for everybody who dropped me a line – it always made my day when somebody appreciated my efforts. So, please, if you liked this blog, write an email to someone else’s blog you enjoy (you can send me something, too – but I won’t be able to read it until, well yes, until I have internet access again).
I think I’ll leave you here, now.

Have a good Friday and a better weekend. Belle
p.s. honestly? I will miss you! :* Belle

No air condition at home

I didn’t go swimming last weekend – which was my first option in the heat. Instead I chose the second option: cinema.
In Italy cinemas often close during summer and the first already do so. Yet some are still open, so it’s the best place to go (after the pool) in the hottest hours of the day. If I really want to indulge I get ice cream – which I did. Hey life is short.


Now, guess the movie. Ha ha! ;-)

The news-stand man makes his ideal woman.

Gumbley's News from Louise Lockhart on Vimeo.

Very interesting turn, ahahahah!

If you have some time to play, try Freerice. It's an on-line knowledge game that claims to donate 10grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program for every right answer. Is this cynical? I am not sure, but I know that I loved the art section. You can freshen up your grammar or foreign language knowledge and many other subjects, too.



And to finish this week: I loved this preview about modern architecture. I am sure all these homes have air condition!

Coast Modern Film Trailer from Coast Modern on Vimeo.

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

Exceptional Monday post

I say in speeches that a plausible mission of artists is to make people appreciate being alive at least a little bit. I am then asked if I know of any artists who pulled that off. I reply, 'The Beatles did'.
- Kurt Vonnegut



I just couldn't wait to pass you this.
(Amazing. The Beatles are big.)

Have a good monday - see you on friday! Belle

Did you know? FiF readers enjoy their Fridays.

TGIF! I hope I'll get some time to go to the local swimming pool. I cannot wait to crawl some lines, really!



Bob Hyland is curing the "Black Thumb Syndrome". I really liked a lot his bottle planter.



Could this be a good idea to get my plants ready for the holidays? Last winter holidays my plants nearly died by freezing, in summer they risk to die of thirst. It's not very kind, I know. Who said life's easy?

I so much liked the "I can teach you"-idea from the creative-mornings people.



I thought all the week over what I could teach. This is what came into my mind.



What could you teach?



It means to enjoy a work-free weekend! If you pass a flower, take two minutes to look at it very close! ;-)

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

Short post due to tecnical problems

Today I am late with my Fridaypost, please forgive me. Yesterday night my internet connection broke down and there was no way to make it work again. But now I am back and I typing quickly these lines before starting to work.

Ha! It's Friday again! Isn't that great? Summer is coming nearer and nearer, last week I bought a new Bikini and got some real sunscreen, because you know:

"Put on your sunblock, because it's rays today, raisins tomorrow."
—Fran Drescher in The Beautician and the Beast

I said last week that it's hot, now it's raining, seems as if I always have to complain about the weather right? Weather, like it or not. :-)
But, the taste of summer is here: ice cream, mosquitoes, open windows, barbecues,rice-salads - yes, I made my first rice-salad of this summer last weekend after insistent request. This spring I decided to eat strawberries as much as I could until I got nausea, but even if I tried really hard I didn't have enough. I must repeat this experiment in the next strawberry season.

This little short film is very 'summer' - don't worry, you will understand french.

Gary from Gary on Vimeo.

I have to leave you now, duty is calling - but be sure to get some summer this weekend!

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

I had a hot week. You?

This week there was a heatwave in Italy and we had up to 36° Celsius. I had a hard time to adapt to this temperature and was struggling with headaches. Fortunately after 8 hot days, temperatures are adjusting to normal and some wind is blowing.



I am so happy it is friday and I just hope that every one can start relaxing now. I found this music is soothing.


So nice. This makes me feel better every time I hear it.

This here is geek font humour. I absolutely love the end.



You think you have a good eye? Try the hue test!



And finally - something for next week: Here is how to have more energy.



Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

Gone fishing! See you next week!

Thanks for dropping by. I am away for some days, taking the time to relax and enjoy the sun.

Wish you all a great weekend! Belle

Good News: it's Friday!

I think it was one of my brilliant ideas of my life to call this blog "finally it's friday" - seldom these three words have been more true than today.
I had a really hard and harsh week. I thought, I've seen it all, but then there is always someone who can make it worse. Puzzling! :-O
So, hurray to Friday! I need to party.
Here are three songs that I listened all week through - my no-calories tiramisu.
"I love" from a great talented Sam Bennett. I love the rhythm - this song will make your feet move!
"Looking at the sun" by Gramcery Arms is a relaxing smooth song - and we all love the sunshine, right?
And if you really want to rock the clouds away "The drawing board" is the right song for you!

Did I get your attention? :-)

Here a supersweet short film I loved so much. If you are the nervous kind of person ("I don't have the time to see something that needs more than 2 minutes") - use your lunch break to see this. You'll need it!



Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle
p.s. I saw Star Trek! Awesome!

It is Star Trek Day

It's useless to deny it, this week I counted the days until today.
it's been a long time that I haven't felt so much anticipation for a movie.



I have seen the trailer this wednesday in cinema waiting for the main movie (Wolverine) to begin and I was completely enthusiastic for the richness of this movie. That is what cinemas were made for: galactic battles, explosions and men that look significantly in each other's eyes. Wow. I am not certain if I can see it today, but this weekend for sure.

If you are not too much in galactic battles, just remember, is there any place more romantic than space? With all the stars around you? Aaaw!

Parallelostory from impactist on Vimeo.

So, just to completely change subject, here something to laugh at gender roles:



See the whole hilarious book at Emily's blog. She writes: "I love gender roles. I really do. But I just know that this would be like, a lawsuit on every page." Fortunately it is just plain funny (for us; for others it is still bloody reality). Though, I must say, I really relate to that reading girl... if boys what to make things comfortable, just go ahead. Since you're at it, could you fix me a drink, sweetie?

Have a good Friday, a better weekend, live long & prosper! Belle

First of May

Recently I had some “first times”, which is something that happens as lesser as you age. So I try always to mentally take note every time I have a “first-timer”: first time I had a drink in a mirror-bar (which is mind-blowing); first time I wrote something similar to a “last will” which turned out mind blowing, too, but in a very funny way; first time I told a friend to make her mistakes and not to marry them (she appreciated it, very).
I noticed that every time I do something new it gives me a little happy kick – like the kick I had when I realized that I really ride the bike without safety wheels (do you remember that moment?).



Wednesday I went to a party, which isn’t actually something I did for the first time, but not since a long, long, looong time. And in the middle of the week! :-o How dare you? I got there directly after work without changing and you could divide the party in people like me and people that had the time to change. Lights were low, drinks were free, so I didn’t matter a lot. I wouldn’t have gone, if it weren’t for a good friend and I intended to go home early – but then, against all odds, I had the time of the month. It was amazing! I found myself 10 years younger, talking, laughing, flirting; I was so happy people asked me “Belle, are you drunk??” – I swear I just had lemonade (a first-timer, too).
I left among the last (midnight… everyone was very responsible, times are hard) and when I came home I found the first issue of “wired” – Italian edition. (And I thought they had lost my subscription; I should trust the world more.)
I flipped through it completely, knowing the next morning I would deeply regret it; but hey, never let a “first time” pass unused.


Firekites - AUTUMN STORY - chalk animation from Lucinda Schreiber on Vimeo.

Sitting here and taking the time to write to you out there, where ever / who ever you are, is something that I do hoping it will make at least one person smile and feel better than before. I have a lot of these moments during the day, mood shifts, up and down, so I opt for the up. Unfortunately >up< is much harder than >down<, so this blog is like a little mental gym for me.
I found, that the general "red alert" feeling around me (justified or not) takes (not to say 'sucks') a lot of energy from me, so I found this very helpful.


Leonie Allan made this great poster for free download.
"Work disconnected"?? I wished I could! I tried it several times for 2x3h shifts, but the telephone always gets me. I should insist more. ;-)

Weekend is here, I am already in it - first of may is Holiday.
Don't you dare to use the first may weekend for cleaning the house. Go out and get some pollen! ;-)

Have a good friday and a better weekend, Belle

You need a back-up

These last days have been very busy (still, again - I don't know, it's fluid) and I am happy for all my back-ups. Happy for my generous friends that don't see me for weeks and call me instead of being disgruntled. Happy for my BF that took over my chores at home(nearly ;-)). And I am very happy for my back-ups at work which are vital in these days, when I overwrote by accident a super-important file back-up was my best friend; and when dead-lines narrowed I was very happy for every helping hand (that was new to me, on my ex-job nobody helped). What is my point? Thanks to all back-ups out there, create them, cherish them, be one!

"When you're in jail, a good friend will be trying to bail you out. A best friend will be in the cell next to you saying, 'Damn, that was fun'."
— Groucho Marx

Have you seen the next Star Trek movie hype everywhere; wow, it's like a global mania. I so hope that this movie is good, being a true classic ST friend.



Wired has published a part of "Spock's ultimate Challenge" - I really liked it.

And, last but not least, again two geekeries united: movies+fonts. Yves Peters has a great eye and a cool taste (though I don't agree on everything).

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

Hello, again

You probably guessed it last week that I am again in time shortage due to a very important dead-line at work. Monday was holiday and I couldn't work, so practically, I am packing 5 days in 4. Basically.
I don't know if you have ever been in that situation, but it happens to me, like 3 to 4 times a year that I only work and sleep. It sounds very hard but in fact it's easy. Anything else becomes irrelevant. Keep up with friends? Make dinner? Go to pay bills? Irrelevant. I have my focus straight on the screen, I feel like a borg-drone, I am second-of-four. My cubicle is my home and I have double daily calories income on kit-kat.
Luckily this are moments that last maximum 10 days, then slowly I come back to real life. Thankfully my BF backs me up in these weeks, so I don't need to fear that the energy company switches off the light due to unpaid bills.

Anyway, I have just two gems for you.

The Different Kinds of People That There Are. I loved it. You know these people. I know a lot of this kind:

People Who Don't Believe in Evolution but Love Antibiotics

People Who Let Their Cat Walk Across Their Kitchen Cutting-Board, Even Though Those Are the Same Fucking Paws That Have Been Tramping Around That Shit-Filled Cat Box and I Don't See a Kitty Foot-Washing Station Around Here, Do You?

And then there is this person who gets your luggage on airport auctions. And tries to find the owner. It's beautiful (and by the way - you can come up with a lot of weird stories just by looking at somebody's clothes.)!


(is this a real nurses uniform? I don't think so...)

Hope you have a good Friday and a better weekend! See you next Friday, Belle

Easter Weekend

How fast time passes!



This Friday I don't have too much for you, so don't stay in front of the screen but go out, enjoy the sun and the weekend. Don't stay in the house!


Zapping from Aritz Aizpurua on Vimeo.

Two things that made in think this week: a man on crutches (be sure to read the comments, sometimes they are hilarious).
And four people on their run from Brooklyn to Manhattan - awesome!

Have a good Friday and a better weekend! Belle

By the way, you look great today!

I tried it... it's true! I guess it was very funny to see while I made circles with my hand and my foot. I even tried to invert, like right foot and left hand, but I ended up only making a mirrored "6", haha! It's a funny thing to try with colleagues, they won't do any better, so after laughing do not forget make a compliment. Like these two guys.



Did you know? Paying someone a compliment can actually decrease your own level of anxiety, as Melissa points out.

I am absolutely digging architecture, funnily I rarely speak about it on the blog. I loved this, it's awesome.



Obviously you need a huge property for this kind of house, especially to keep away 'voyeurs'.

Then I have seen this on internet... it is very strange and I am not really sure what I should think about it, but I couldn't get my eyes off it, so judge by yourself.



On a positive message:


The oldest message in my cell phone memory is from 27th November 2004 - I should delete it, but every time I read it, I remember how important it is. I should frame it one day.



See here all the story.

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

Airport weekend

This week is short for me; I am already off, probably sitting around in an airport or in a plane while you are reading this. I am going to see my folks, really looking forward to meet them. I phoned my parents and my siblings, everybody cannot wait to meet together again - it will be a 'massacre' of air miles, too much food, wine and laughter and I intend to enjoy it every minute.
So, I hope I can sweeten up your Friday a little bit. I start with this Flickrset from Jason Powell.

Images are made by finding old photographs of places, printing them out, and then holding the print up in the modern day location that the original photograph was taken.

I really loved this idea!

Meanwhile it needed more than 4500 still photographs to make this wonderful film. Is it a dream?



Another little film, but this time it is short. Just a minute. Just one take… and you’ll see Kill Bill 1&2 in a whole! (Awesomeness!)



Back to the weekend... I I weren't traveling I would probably try to assemble something like this.



It would be even more miniature and without a house, because I just have a small apartment, but hey, isn't it just plain wonderful?

If you can, do something artsy this weekend! :-)


So, it's the last march-weekend, bad weather should be over now for a while (come back here in september and you'll read my praise for rain). As nature has renewed itself by now, everyone (me included) feels the want of new, too (that is what fashion business is based upon). These ten women did one tiny new thing every day for a month... inspirational! I am thinking on several things I could do, but I guess I will be very happy if I can just go back on my running schedule (3 times a week). Sunday Summer time starts and with more sunlight I am quiet sure to go back to regular runner! ;-)

Just to finish this friday read this touching/wonderful Photo-Journal "Days with my father" from Philip Toledano.

Have a good friday and a better weekend, Belle
p.s. how much I liked "I will" - did you hear it?

It's Friday! You made it, the working week is over. Nearly.. only some other hours to pull. Anyway, I think, since we were all so brave hard working bees this week (I was!), we should celebrate its end, yay!



So, then, I am thinking of dedicating this weekend on spring-cleaning, some sort of it.. I have the urgent need to throw stuff away.
Spring officially starts saturday (hey, Australians; you can start to prepare for autumn)... after this long winter it is a pleasure to be outside and enjoy the sun and frankly, I have no idea how people can go skiing now. :-)
Anyway, since I can open now all windows and get rid of dust and clutter, I can bring in some harmony. All of us already heard about Feng Shui, which is certainly cool but too esoteric for me, but Punk Fui was new to me.

In Punk Fui, like in Feng Shui, decorating is dictated by common sense. The first principle is you should always feel comfortable in your home. It should be a place you love to be. Whatever you need to do to achieve this will create sheng chi. Tsia Carson

Punk Fui will surely do it for me!

The one thing no one will ever be able to throw away is a book.
So, these little companions pile up everywhere, in shelves, next to the bed and on tables and I started to move the piles from one place to the other like tetris blocks, which is a way to remodel your house but doesn't really solve the problem. I was already very, very brave to bring all my old magazines to recycling, but books? Eh-eh, nah, forget it.



See Kylie Stillman's amazing work here.

After the work and the cleaning there should be some play and relax. Regular readers of my blog know that I love super-heroes, so I was superhappy about the Hero Factory..



(now Wolverine will come and play with me?)
I had so much fun choosing my outfit and my weapon and totally agree on my given hero name, which in some way re assumes a skill I developed in the last years in my profession.
When I started as a small agency designer I was always baffled about how precise my boss' eye was. From a distance of a meter he could see the difference of one millimetre. Sceptical I thought he would just fake it and put him on a test... needless to say that he got it all right, owning himself the nickname "eagle-eye".
Recently I started to correct similar small distances, sometimes amazed and taking a ruler to check, but it seems as if you really get a precise eye just by training.

Can I get any geeker? Yes I can: love of type + Star Trek.
(attention: some disturbing type in there)



I am *so* looking forward to the next movie!

So, that's it for this week; I am off!
Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

P.s. some serious stuff here, too. Even if the Italians swear that a glass of wine does wonders for your health and your heart, a million women cannot be wrong.
Ladies, take care.

I liked this one.



It is a little bit mean, I am not sure which one has my sympathy... ;-)
I am fighting, too - a battle with the papers on my desk. I am sorry, this week I have nothing more to offer you. Will update as soon as I can!

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle
p.s. happy birthday

p.p.s.

“Reality leaves a lot to the imagination.” - John Lennon

Spring came and left us in three days. Now it is raining again and again and again. Bah!

As I already wrote, daydreaming is one of the best and cheapest ways to escape rainy reality.


A strange man builds a world using holographic tools for the woman he loves.

"This award winning short was created by filmmaker Bruce Branit, widely known as the co-creator of '405'. World Builder was shot in a single day followed by about 2 years of post production."

The next film is talking about a complete different world, has a complete different style and is super-sweet. Exactly what is needed this Friday.



So, I think this is enough with short films. Lately I re-discovered the joys of poetry. What about these first lines of Byron:

She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that 's best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes...

Isn't this instant dreamland?
Find yours here, thanks to the poetry tool.

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

Happy to announce first signs of spring

Last week I was complaining about winter, this week there are already the first signs of spring that'll come. No swallows yet, but some daisies and forget-me-nots and I even saw the first daffodils. Grey sky left us and back is bright blue!
Yet it is a very quiet thing, nothing loud in nature in this moment (spring will get loud in some weeks, I guess). It's more a kind of anticipation of spring which is all around and I cannot help it; I just have to celebrate it! :-)




"On my night time flight back to SF from Amsterdam, I noticed that the lights from cities were making the clouds glow. Really spectacular and ethereal - it was really seeing the impact of urban environments from a different perspective. Each glow or squiggle represents one town or city!" James Leng
The song is wonderful, too.

Via photojojo I just discovered the photographic dictionary . We just needed that!



Would be nice to make my own!

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

I guess February is the stupidest month of the year (next to November).

That may be a reason why it is so short and why mankind needed to insert Valentine in it. It is still winter, but you already had months of winter. It’s terrible cold but shops already sell summer fashion, so you long for warmth. Days are still short, but you cannot stand your sofa anymore, all you want is go out out out (without freezing, obviously).
While our personal world gets faster with every day (you remember analog modems?), you cannot hurry nature. Spring is in march. Period.
So, all we can do is wait. And while we are waiting, let’s try not to get winterblues (even if it is really justified in February).
Best way to fight the blues: dancing!



Ely Kim is a Student at Yale and confesses to love dancing. Now, I know it is a long video and the first minute may seem just funny, but Ely has some really cool moves.
And an awesome track list! Congratulations!

Second best way to fight winter blues: dream of stylish places. I found this set from Tom Palumbo; Paris 1962.



Isn't it just perfect? You'll find all his set here and his personal hompage here, he has great photos!

Third: now use your energy and your imagination to change something. As a woman I tend to remodel the house, but it could be anything you like. If I am not wrong it is a good moment to do some garden work, too.



I wasn't really surprised, that my style is "Scandinavian Urban" - what is yours?

if you still have doubts how to active your creative self, take the test.

Ready to go?



Or make your own list.

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

First Lines

The American Book Review recently published the "100 Best First Lines from Novels", most of them are predictable (like the obvious number 1 or number 6), others are a wonderful re-read.
I personally love number 2:

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. — Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice (1813)

I think it is equally funny as it is intelligent. Where do you find this in a first line? Then, the first line that had more influence on my life, Mr. Dalloway.


Mrs. Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself. —Virginia Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway (1925)

First lines are the crucial ones, everywhere. I guess, everybody who is staring at his/her blank Valentine's card in these days, knows what I am talking about. Even when you are not about to write a novel, but a simple e-mail or even when you are not writing, but just looking for a good first sentence to talk to some one; the first line is the most difficult. Recently I had a conversation about leather bound journals, I was full of admiration for them, I love them for their materials, the leather, the paper - everything precious. But then I don't use them, because I feel the urge to fill them with something equally precious. I turned to Moleskines, good companions in my whirlwind daily life. I like the sound when you knock on them.



But still, in every journal I start, I leave the first pages blank, keeping the space for precious thoughts & finds.
Michael Bierut even finds Moleskins too showy: "No fancy Moleskines for me, just standard-issue office supply composition books." He has 26 years in 85 Notebooks. Awesome story!

Now, to something completely weird (only Internet can do this): the Beatles complete on Ukulele! Every time I hear Ukulele I think about Mrs. Monroe.



Roger Greenawalt and David Barratt have this project to "Record & perform on ukulele all 185 original compositions by The Beatles with 185 guest artists." I don't even have words for this, it's fantastic. My favourite so far: While my Guitar gently weeps, maybe because if the world divides in John-people or Paul-people, I am a George-person.

(funnily, even the Beatles had problems with first lines)

And now, Valentine! Yay! Lovers fest. It's tomorrow. I didn't want to write about it, this year, again. But then, I came across some lovely links I want to share with you.

1. For the one who already has a sweetheart:
Please, don't spend money, make by yourself.



I love this kit Derek and Lauren made, in my opinion, it doesn't need more. Aw!

2. For the one who has a crush
You know, that I am Flickrition since 2005, but I never had the idea to use it for dating. But then, I made some lovely friends via Flickr, and there are some who met on Flickr.
So, this Wiki-how-to explains how to turn your Flickr crush into real romance.
An authentic Flickr romance. Now, I do believe again.

3. No, I rather be alone! (aka: Bah! Humbug!)

here you go

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

It's already a week?

I love the dog. I really feel connected to him.



And I love good advice. Specially when it is so creative like this one:

Thelonius Monk’s advice to saxophonist Steve Lacy (1960) (by swissmiss)

"Always leave them wanting more" - I should try this at work. In this moment I have more the impression that the harder I work, they always expect more and faster, faster, faster. :-o

Several years ago I saw a printed ad with a guy in shirt and jeans painting this bathroom walls with scenes from the Sistine Chapel, I loved the idea. Since then I was always dreaming to transform a bathroom into something special, a place that could be in another country, like Hawaii (would have been pink and cyan, with huge flowers and some hula dolls). I didn't think of this idea for years now, until I saw this illustrator's way to transform his bathroom walls. Awesome!





My Fingers itch now... ;-)

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

Magic

Let's start with another beautiful musical video. A Stop-motion film featuring Oren Lavie's "Her Morning Elegance". Made me dream!


(made by them)

Sun been down for days
A pretty flower in a vase
A slipper by the fireplace
A cello lying in its case...

Simple lyrics, very evocative, a masterpiece by itself.

So, uh, how was your week? Mine was quite full of thousand things: in the office we had an important sales meeting which ended in a great dinner, laughing until late about sales stories around the world (loved the australian versions, they more or less included all poisonous animals, haha!). Thursday a colleague asked how to extend his notebook screen to his peripheral wide screen and I completely messed up his settings (because no pc is created equal to another) and nobody knew how to go back.
Best of it; he didn't blame me, but himself and after trying 20 minutes all different combinations of settings, restarting, un-plugging and calling the technician for help, we were still in the same messy position. Frustrated he went to smoke and I went back to my office, deeply in shame for what had happened. There was a skype-message waiting for me. It happened to be an ex-colleague/friend who is a pc head. I told him about my mess and he came up with three different solutions. This was nice, but actually I didn't want to touch anyone's pc any more. Ever.
When I left office for lunch-break I saw my BOSS trying to set up my colleague's pc, which made me feel even worse. Omg, what had I done?
I went to lunch to see my BF in a shopping mall, he saw my worried face and asked "what's wrong?". I was reluctant to tell him; he understands computers even lesser than me and I didn't want to spoil the lunch with my stupid problems. But then I told him anyway. And he said: "in my office, when we connect notebooks to peripherals we do it by pressing this and that - after lunch let's see the pc-shop and I show you how." And this was more or less similar to one of my friend's three conclusions. My crazy mind was like "well: two out of four - you should give it a try!"
Back in the office I passed at my colleague's. "So, uhm, how's it going?" "Still the same!" "Well, would you mind if I try a last thing?" "Well, sure..."
Actually I was really amazed how he handled all the situation. He never blamed me or got nervous with me (I would have been in his position) and he gave me a last try, it was really nice. So, I tried the key-pressing-combination my BF had shown me and it didn't work. What a delusion. We stared in silence at the blank black screen.
"What is this key here?", I wondered.
And - magic - it worked!! I was overwhelmed with relief - he was overjoyed and we cheered like soccer players after a goal!
Lesson learned:
a) I will never touch anybody's pc any more. Never. Ever. Period.
b) Be thankful that a lot of people are much more patient than yourself.
c) Without magic this world would be a very very sad place.

Sam Spencer brings the magic to grey rainy days.



So, finally it's Friday and I cannot wait to chill out the week with beer&book.



Just another thing: I found this interview with Illustrator Frank Chimero very inspiring. He talks about tools, cheap tools. Cheap paper, cheap pens, using scissors and getting started - instead of being paralysed in front of expensive material. Made me think of the days when I made my best drawings on the back of paper-to-recycle.

Have a good Friday and a magic weekend, Belle

Is it just me or did the new year start only this tuesday?

I have never seen europe so hysterical about an american president. We had live-transmissions in television and radio. What Michelle wore, what the kids wore, what the president did&said, how he awesomely didn't get overwhelmed by the day. It was, wow. Well done, americans!


(by Maya*made)

The guardian published a book with "Messages for Obama", I hope he got a copy!



Here, and here.

So, let's go around on the other side of the globe, Australia, to Artist Emma Hack.
Apparently she has always been interested in body art and several applications and when I saw her pictures (no, let's say "work") on StyleCrave I was completely stunned: it is so, so very beautiful.



Here is the whole series, one is better than the other! More about Emma. Makes me want to get wallpapers all over my place, or at least a new painting for the wall.

Last thing I have seen on the net, which made me dream is this moss carpet.



It "is made of imputrescible foam called plastazote. Each cell welcomes a piece of moss (ball moss, Island moss, forest moss). The humidity of the bathroom and the drops flowing from the body, water the mosses. This vegetable carpet procures a great feeling to your feet." I imagine how it would feel to step out the shower and on this moss carpet and dream myself to a fairy land. I could need a ambience-cd as well. Is this too new age for you? Anyway, I have doubts the plants would survive in my bathroom. :-)

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

The Vintage feel

The new year just started with all the blow of "shiny", "go" and "fresh"; but all I see around me has a Vintage feel. Which is completely ok with me, the real world is filled with new problems, but at least free time is packed with things that are new, but feel like old friends. Obviously a genius marketing trend.

Lets start with a stop-motion film made for 4th Estate by London’s Apt Studio.


(via Crblog)

You can see all the care and love for books in this film! Such a huge work.

more about it here and here.

But I really went nostalgic over Star Trek's 10 Cheesiest Classic Creatures by Wired Magazine.



It lists the greatest alien moments of the Classic Star Trek, with the right mixture of humour and scientific seriousness. I guess my favourites are the tribbles, they were just cute (but I remember that I really felt sad for the Salt Vampire...).

In music, the vintage feel is already well used. One of my latest finds is 'Gin' - These roses. When I saw the video I thought she is far too young for this kind of music, but well - I pretend is as old as she sounds. :-)





You get the song in high quality here, for free.

For more great songs, look at the site of Cloudberry Records. The quantity of cool songs is overwhelming - and I confess that I chose (and judged) by the cover, sooner or later I will go through all of them. Now tell me, mixtapes are dead (we call them "playlists" now).

Have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle

Happy New Year!

Yes, it's coming a little late, but, sorry, I couldn't make it earlier.
Anyway, here we are, 2009. YAY! I have still problems to write the right year. It just looks wrong. And lately I get so used to american style date writing, that I get confused with the european style date. Just to drop a question, do you remember how far away and completely strange "2009" looked in the 80ies?
When "mobile phones" were these things soldiers used in television. The only thing that went near to our current cell phones was the "communicator" that Cpt. Kirk used (that was a pretty cool prediction, wasn't it?).
When computers were still as big as a car? Or even bigger?


(via brother)

So, I was thinking to post deep thought new resolutions for the next (er, current) year, but I just got back to work and into real life and didn't have the time (for deep thoughts yes; but I couldn't translate them into pretty words). Anyway, I am sure you already read about new year resolutions on other blogs, if not; I really like these.

To finish for this Friday; I am not sure if this is new to you, but I discovered Indexed just today.



A blog by Jessica Hagy; I subscribed immediately... plain funny.

So, yet another new year's hug to you, have a good Friday and a better weekend, Belle