Hello, I’m Jamie. I’ve been pondering for a while whether I
should indulge myself in the ritual self-reflection that is often induced by
the undertaking of a blog. I had an idea in my head that, in order that people
would be able to see what I’m up to (yes, I am THAT presumptuous), I could
upload a ‘photo of the day’ whilst I am here in the Netherlands. However, based on my past history of photo
uploading – one lucky holiday every two years – I think that the whole world
(my estimated readership) will be better served by a more literary medium.
The motivation also runs a little deeper; having been here a
little over 24 hours, I can see this blog being a
very effective way of helping me to process all the of the different
events, new people and, perhaps very occasionally, feelings that are being
piled in my general direction at an alarmingly fast rate. I hope that by
‘maintaining’ this dusty little corner of the internet, I’ll be able to spend
less of the individual days thinking too much and just getting on with (and
enjoying!?) whatever it is than I need
to do.
The first highly important and CRUCIAL TO EVERYTHING problem
with starting something like this is the title. Do I go for a clever pun,
something pseudo-intellectual (‘I have nothing to declare except my safe
passage through customs’ sprung to mind, before I promptly hated myself for it)
something song themed, or none of the above?? I have actually written this post
before I have a title, so whatever is in the big writing above is what I have gone
for. Consume at your own delight. Here is some actual content:
I moved in to a house in Bilthoven a couple of days ago. My
parents left this morning, having helped no end in trying to smooth out this
peculiar transition, most notably by helping me procure a second hand bike so
that I can cycle the 30 minutes in to Utrecht Conservatorium each day (a
journey that I have christened a ‘Thigh Development Scheme’, or TDS). The
landlady/surrogate mother figure is Joke, an incredibly helpful if slightly
barmy 59 year-old, and I also live with a 22 year-old sound man and a 30
something something-man. I haven’t met him yet. Can you tell?
I have an Erasmus
introduction day tomorrow in the administration centre of the Utrecht School or
the Arts which, so it seems, is two escalators above a Kruidvat (Dutch Wilkos)!
With any luck then, tomorrow will not only be the first time I get a tour of
the Conservatorium (being told how to book some rooms would be nice) but will
also enable me to meet similarly nervy and keen-to-seem-nice people. Thanks to
the unusual location I can probably pick up a shaving adaptor on the way, lest
the Dutch be subjected to my unavoidably ginger chin-fuzz.
I hope this isn’t too wordy, vague, sarcy, rambling,
concise, intellectual, dumbed-down or self-indulgent for any of my large and
diverse demographic of readers. Let me know if you think I need to change my
style of writing/content of my character and I will do my best! I hope to write
in a few days with details of some new friends(…?) and a post-mortem of my
first Dutch sax lesson!
TTFN.
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