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kapsalon

I have been sorting through boxes of slides I took years ago and came across myself looking eerily like one of my sons. Time has left not too much of a mark, I like to kid myself, but it has cruelly thinned me out on top. A side effect of this is that I don’t spend much time or money at the kapsalon – hairdresser. And people talking about bad hair days leave me cold; if only!
Alistair MacLean
(March 10, 2010)
piepklein

One of the gems of Flemish television is the programme that follows the evening news on VRT. Its name, Man bijt hond – Man bites dog – reflects the fact that it takes an unusual look at ordinary events.
Alistair MacLean
(February 17, 2010)
knuffelbeer

You may not have noticed, but the sap is rising. Spring may not be in the air quite yet, but nature is preparing, as are those in love by sending Valentine messages to each other and to the press.
Alistair MacLean
(February 10, 2010)
bedrieger

We all love a conman – bedrieger, as long as we’re not the ones being conned. The 26-year-old Abdelkarim Serhani, and his entourage, has been living the life of Riley staying at expensive hotels and borrowing peperdure – very expensive cars, and dit alles zonder achteraf voor de rekening op te draaien – all this without later footing the bill. He was up to his tricks at the recent Autosalon – Motor Show in Brussels, where he almost managed to “test-drive” a Rolls Royce before being rumbled.
Alistair MacLean
(February 3, 2010)
mag

Thank goodness a spade is a spade in any language. Learning the names of objects in another language is not too difficult and certainly not for an English speaker learning Dutch. Yes, you may say, a spade is een spade, but it’s also een schop, and the four of spades is schoppen vier, and the expression “call a spade a spade” is quite different in Dutch: het kind bij zijn naam noemen (“call a child by its name”).
Alistair MacLean
(January 27, 2010)
aai de poes

This past Monday was the most depressing day of the year, according to a psychologist with a formula. Which I suppose is good news, since it’s behind us. Certainly, the harsh winter is beginning to take its toll on people’s spirits. The papers don’t help lift the gloom with stories about armoed – poverty, een seriemoordenaar – a serial killer and aardbevingen – earthquakes.
Alistair MacLean
(January 20, 2010)
strooien

The most dangerous place in Flanders these days is the pavement. Most roads have been salted to allow cars free passage. But try using the sidewalks or cycle lanes, and you are likely to come a cropper.
Alistair MacLean
(January 13, 2010)
boeman

Today is Twelfth Night. Time to undress the tree and clear away all those Christmas cards that you have on cupboards and shelves. Or perhaps you don’t. Not that I’m suggesting no one sends you cards, but rather you may have been sent e-cards, often more fun if ephemeral. e-cards cost practically nothing and they save the forests, don’t they?
Alistair MacLean
(January 6, 2010)
boeman

Today is Twelfth Night. Time to undress the tree and clear away all those Christmas cards that you have on cupboards and shelves. Or perhaps you don’t. Not that I’m suggesting no one sends you cards, but rather you may have been sent e-cards, often more fun if ephemeral. e-cards cost practically nothing and they save the forests, don’t they?
Alistair MacLean
(January 6, 2010)
klimaat

There’s nothing like being prepared, or forewarned. Now that global warming is apparently manmade, one newspaper is already inviting us to make our goede klimaatvoornemens voor 2010 – good climate resolutions for 2010. You can even add your good intentions online and see how green you are. The list is quite long, but, at first glance, I already seem to be doing my bit.
Alistair MacLean
(December 16, 2009)