a blog with room for my more geeky side, posts about gadgets, smartphones, multimedia servers, websites, ecommerce, etc
for my other side take a look at http://www.LivingLaDolceVita.it
It's a known fact to my Twitter-followers I am not fond hate UGGs and that I keep on calling them #UglyUGGs(the #, called hashtag, is something typical Twitter-like to make searching for some topics easier). I think #UglyUGGs are the worst things in fashion over the last years. Well... together with skinny models. They look horrible (both the models and #UglyUGGs), they are bad for your feet (so are high heels, but at least these look good on a woman) and if they get wet they will not keep you warm at all, no worse they'll cause influenza because of wet cold feet!
So WTF is the advantage, why are women wearing these horrible things? Because they are so comfortable and warm is the most heard answer. Warm? But once they get wet? Which could happen in winter (especially in the Netherlands). Then you end up having soaking wet and cold feet all day! Comfortable? Ow so you girls walk on heels and other fancy shoes because they are comfortable? I don't think so, most women just buy shoes because they look nice, or make them look nice. Which is absolutely okay! I like to look at women (what an eye-opener this must be for some people), I like to see women with nice shoes or boots. Especially with heels, it makes their legs look even better. But hey, if you want to feel comfortable, no problem at all! But why does comfortable needs to be horrible and ugly? There are many many comfortable, warm and still great looking (and CHEAPER) alternatives!
The point I wanted to make is: #UglyUGGs are bad for economy! Today in a short twitter discussion between me and two (until last week completely unknown to me) women concluded that #UglyUGGs are probably the best contraception there is! And likely to be allowed by the Church as well: they cause absolute sexual abstention! And that is what makes them bad for economy! In today's crisis we need people to spend and we need as much people as possible working to pay our future pensions, so children are a must!
So if you want to get your economy going: STOP buying #UglyUGGs!
It happened last year and although I should've known better this year I fell again for the "purity" and joy of the blind auditions of a new Talent Show on Dutch TV: "The Voice of Holland", on Twitter known as #TVOH. For those who haven't seen it in their country yet an explanation of this concept:
this talent show starts with so called "blind auditions" where the jury members can't see the candidates in the beginning. They're turned with their backs towards the podium. Based on only the vocal performance they have to decide whether they want the candidate to go through to the next round, if they think he/she is good they hit a button and this juror's chair turns around and so he/she can see who is making that great sound.
It's especially nice when the candidate is a bit weird, particular, like the fully tattooed Ben Saunders. He was one of last years' contestants (and winner). Watch the video of his audition below here. Ben turned out to be a sheep -no a lamb- in wolves' clothing.
To make it even more interesting for the viewer the jury members who turned their seats (and thus want the candidate to go through) have to convince the candidate to choose him/her over another juror to join his/her team. So roles turn, it's not the candidate anymore that needs to convince the jury, it's the jury pulling on the candidates' limbs.
But back to what I wanted to point out. Right after so called blind auditions the Voice of X (fill in your country) turns back into being any other talent show with SMS votings and so the best looking boys are way ahead of the other candidates. (It's a known fact that teenage girls are the most active voters. Although Ben's charisma even managed to beat that.) But what made this show even worse is the infinite trust and positive comments by the jury. Even after a lousy performance. Where X-Factor was so interesting because the jury was sometimes very hard and direct this show looses it because it's soft, way too soft and it lacks criticism. So last week it was enough... I couldn't handle it anymore! This was too sweet and t0o incredible!
And then yesterday evening I saw the best "talent show" of this year. Seven teenage girls, tonight they'll probably be voting for one of the cute boys in #TVOH's semi-final, were selected out a group of over 400 girls by one of Holland's best DJ's trying to become the Dutch Birdy. It was a very compact election, the 400+ girls send in a video via YouTube, the DJ (Giel Beelen) selected the best seven and they performed in the studio yesterday morning. Live on national radio and then Giel announced the winner. Apart from the fact that the best one won (Anna Verhoeven) I was very impressed by the performance all seven gave that very same evening in my favourite TV-show "De Wereld Draait Door" #DWDD singing Birdy's hit "Skinny Love". And that led to my conclusion that we do not need shows like TVOH. We just need YouTube, Social Media to push them and talent watchers like Giel!
Via Twitter, Facebook and Google+ I received some requests for the recipe of Pizzoccheri. I have taken the recipe of the box of the pizzoccheri I usually buy in our local supermarket.
Ingredients (for 6p): 500g pizzoccheri 300g potatoes (in 2x2cm cubes) 150-250g butter (I think 150g is more then enough) 300g Savoy cabbage, chard leaves (the white stamps) or spinach (I prefer Savoy cabbage) sliced 500g half fat cheese from Valtellina (Casera, Bito) - these can be hard to find outside Italy, maybe Fontina, Toma or (worst case) Brie can be used as an alternative (sliced) 150g grated Parmesan cheese 2 cloves of garlic some leaves of sage
Preparation (15-20mins): Cook the potatoes and vegetables in boiling water, add the pizzoccheri after a couple of minutes and boil it for another 12-15mins until the pasta is nicely cooked "al dente". When the pasta (and potatoes and veggies) are cooked drain the water and mix the slices of cheese and grated Parmesan under the pasta and veggies. Meanwhile melt the butter on low fire with the garlic and sage (don't fry the garlic) and serve it over the pasta.
--- I will try to translate this blog one of these days ---
C'era una volta una spada. Una spada, chiamiamolo Excalibur, molta preziosa per i cavalieri della Round Table 64 Varese perché è una dei due simboli presente ai giorni della fondazione di questa bellissima Table. Al Decennale della Round Table 64 Varese il 22 maggio 2010 Excalibur fu dato in prestito ai Tabler di Mantova per farli spadellare i loro nuovi soci all'AGM di 2010. A Mantova la spada sparisse e per qualche mesi i Tabler di Varese sono rimasti disperati; dov'era finita la spada?
Cosi "the Quest" (la ricerca) per ricuperare questa spada iniziasse! Dopo ore e ore di telefonate, sacchi di mail, interventi dai comitati di zona e quello nazionale e forze ancora più maggiore venisse fuori che la spada era finito nei mani di due ladrocini Bresciani. Grazie alla buona ricerca del nostro carissimo ex-President Paolo 007 Duco ed i suoi contatti ladrici abbiamo saputo che la spada potrebbe essere presente alla apertura dell'anno dei Tabler Bresciani nel loro covo. Fu cosi che il giorno giovedì 22 settembre 2011 io, Dagmar Sporck - presidente della Round Table 64 Varese, sono andato a Brescia e mi nascosi nella tana dei leoni, aspettando il branco dei Bresciani. Già in quel momento ebbi la possibilità di fare un contro-furto, la loro bandiera fu esposto senza protezione e senza guardie, ma ovviamente avrei già spifferato i miei intenzioni.
Uno dopo uno arrivarono i ladri, furono in tanti, in più c'erano anche i complici Belgi della Round Table 37 Gembloux ed degli anziani (ex-Tabler). Ed io, tutto da solo! Per fortuna avevo portato bottiglie di una sostanza stupefacente, Poggio Cavalieri - Chianti Classico, che li volevo lasciar bere per immobilizzarli. Non bastavano però le poche bottiglie per questo gruppone e così decisi di aspettare un momento migliore per il mio piano. Sgattaiolai dal mio nascondiglio e mi presentai ai ladri.
Non so ancora se pensavano che fosse un complice ma mi ricevettero come un carissimo amico e mi offrirono da bere e da mangiare. Cibo tipico di zona, un piatto più buono che l'altro, della Mortadella Tartufata, Bresaola, Prosciutto, Polenta con il Lardo di Colonnata, pasta d'uova, Coniglio alla Bresciana, dolci, frutta,...
Dopo questa buonissima cenona però loro si misero a premeditare loro nuovi piani diabolici, si parlava di spiedare uccelli, scorrerie a Verona, Monte Carlo, ecc. Parlarono anche di un nuovo sito (per quale ancora da re-registrare il vecchio dominio RT37BS.it) per presentare la banda per sedurre i giovani Bresciani di associarsi alla banda RT37. Tutto questo però non potevo far succedere e decisi di intervenire, ma come... Poco dopo, fu già dopo mezzanotte, nel momento che qualcuno si era già addormentato e quelli rimasti scrutarono su un schermo a questo nuovo sito mi sono preso la spada e sono schizzato via, protetto dal buio della notte Bresciana. Mi sono messo su i miei 170 cavali e via da quel posto!
Quando mi sentii sicuro mi sono connesso in rete e ho registrato IO il dominio RT37BS.it - il furto 2.0!
io con i due ladri Bresciani che hanno rubato la spada a Mantova sembra che rido, ma nn vedete il coltello dietro le mie spalle
io con il capitano Bresciano che mi ha lasciato toccare la spada alla mia destra però c'era uno con una pistola
My friends/followers know we like to go out for dinner/lumch and enjoy a good meal with a good glass of wine. And it doesn't need to be fancy, we appreciate honest food prepared with joy and love whether it costs 10euros or 100euros.
After this afternoon's pastalunch I fancied a good piece of fish so we went to Rosetto's boulevard where we expected to find some restaurant. Well we found some lido's and this particular place (no names, one could check my Foursquare postings if you really want to know) seemed pretty popular and had an inviting look.
The girls insisted on having pizza (it was a ristorante pizzeria) and Maddy and I choose some simple antipasti (affettato and bruschette) and a "sogliola (sole) mugnaia" for her and "spiedini di pesce griliati" for me. After OVER ONE HOUR waiting we finally got a plate of sliced ham and salami and 5 bruschette with that same ham and tomato slices. It would have taken me less then 5 minutes to prepare, so why did we had to wait over an hour for this?! The ham and salami were badly cut (too thick), the bruschette were not prepared (with oil and garlic) but just roasted and had a (too) thick slice of ham and tomato on them, impossible to eat with you hands as you should. But okay, maybe this is normal in Abruzzo, everything a bit more "rustico".
In the meantime the girls received their pizzas, which were maybe okay to Dutch/German standards but any Italian pizzeria should be ashamed of itself serving these pizze.
And still I was hoping the fish would save the evening. That hope vaporised once the main courses arrived (30secs after we finished the ham) the sole was not even close to the one I had 3 evenings before.It was tough (maybe kept warm for over an hour) and I wondered if it was a reanimated frozen one. My fish skewers were prepared without any fantasy, just pieces of squid (tough, lousy quality) and shrimps (even mealy), no other fish, nor vegetables.
This was by far our worst culinary experience in Italy ever!
It's a known fact to my Twitter-followers I 
So WTF is the advantage, why are women wearing these horrible things? Because they are so comfortable and warm is the most heard answer. Warm? But once they get wet? Which could happen in winter (especially in the Netherlands). Then you end up having soaking wet and cold feet all day! Comfortable? Ow so you girls walk on heels and other fancy shoes because they are comfortable? I don't think so, most women just buy shoes because they look nice, or make them look nice. Which is absolutely okay! I like to look at women (what an eye-opener this must be for some people), I like to see women with nice shoes or boots. Especially with heels, it makes their legs look even better. But hey, if you want to feel comfortable, no problem at all! But why does comfortable needs to be horrible and ugly? There are many many comfortable, warm and still great looking (and CHEAPER) alternatives!
