Rock & Roll Is All I Wanna Do

xmas Buffy

2009-12-21T20:34:36Z

Strange Effect

2008-07-17T22:02:59Z

You've got this strange effect on me
And I like it

You've got this strange effect on me
And I like it

You make my world in white
You make my darkness bright, oh yes
You've got this strange effect on me
And I like it, and I like it

And I like the way you kiss me
Don't know if I should
But this feeling it's love and I know it
That's why I feel good

You've got this strange effect on me
And I like it

You've got this strange effect on me
And I like it

You make my world in white
You make my darkness bright, oh yes
You've got this strange effect on me
And I like it, and I like it

jacky_cane @ 2007-11-13T20:38:00

2007-11-13T21:06:15Z

Do you know these times where you just cannot find the time to even do your laundry or clean your house, simply you have too much stuff planned? Well, looks like I'm experiencing this atm. Glad to finally have some time to write in my journal, cause I'm having the time of my life!

Done many trips again over the past few months. The 2 weekends in Liverpool, the one in London, the weekend with red_woman_red in Paris, they have all been a blast, but what I experienced in Nürnberg last Thursday and Friday changed my life... My beloved Everton played there for an Uefa Cup group match and yeah even though it was basically 8 hours from home, I just had to be there. Some people might think football last 90 minutes, but all who were there know this takes at least about 2 days and in fact the memory will last your whole life!

Arrived in Nürnberg at 1 PM after leaving my house at 4:30 in the morning. A very comfortable ICE train trip made me arrive in a good mood and as soon I come out of the station, I see BLUE everywhere! Met up with Brian and Aimee immediately and picked up our tickets at a nearby hotel. We were quite happy to have the tickets in our hands in the end, cause it took us quite some effort to get them. A check-in at the hotel and a quick fresh up later it’s time to enjoy the party in Nürnberg city centre. The squares are full of drinking Everton fans and the excitement of the match is built there to the max! Brian had a bit too much of the good old German lager, so it’s good we leave for the stadium at 6.30. The match doesn’t start till 9, so plenty of time to sober up.

Whilst in the stadium Aimee and I decided to have a go at meeting some of the players, as Brian just needs to get back on this planet to be able to see the match. In the end successfully, cause we managed to speak to Anichebe, Pienaar and the fabulous David Moyes himself! After all this excitement and a bit of sobering up cause of the alcohol free beers, it’s time for the match. We do have lots of websites that can actually tell you how we eventually won 2-0, so won’t go into too many details about it. It was a fabulous atmosphere inside the Easy Credit Stadium, where there’s Evertonians everywhere , even though officially allocated 2000 tickets, there’s at least 7000! After the match there’s goodbye to Brian and Aimee, as they have to fly back to Liverpool already. For me and thousands of Evertonians it’s a bit more drinks in Nünberg centre. The atmosphere is even better after the victory, but am getting knackered and just cannot stay up till closing time in the end. Happy as a little kid I end up sleeping with a smile from ear to ear, so lucky to be part of this…

Waking up with still the same smile on Friday, but still feel quite knackered. Decide to do a bit of shopping and exploring the city in the end. The fact I’m still tired and that it’s rather cold in Nünberg that day, I decide on getting a drink inside the Finigans bar. Once inside I am amazed by the amount of Evertonians drinking and singing in there and before I know it I’m in the middle of the official day after celebration party. Totally unexpected I am all part of it and get to meet so many cool new friends. I get to learn many cool old time songs, which I never heard before and am amongst the most fanatic and energetic fans Everton FC has got. The passion for the club is immense, these people breed Everton, eat Everton, sleep Everton and I am so thrilled I can say I feel the same and that I am so feeling at ease there. This is where I have dreamt of my whole life. The train journey back home is very relaxed, mostly cause of the amount of booze I had in the Irish Pub. Arrived home round midnight and have to prepare for work again, which will be tough after all that happened…

Saturday at work is tough, but the excitement of Nürnberg gets me through the day quite easily and the prospect of having to go to Köln on the Sunday is also something that makes me happy. A quiet Saturday night with a few beers in the end later I fall asleep like a rose, tomorrow it’s the lovely Client on the bill. I love this way of living…

An 11 AM wake up is nice and am happy to have finally slept decently. First up some football on tv and a frustrating afternoon sees Feyenoord not being able to beat Ajax in the end. Not that it really affects the day, cause after the final whistle I leave for Köln almost instantly. Tonight Client is playing at the Yardclub over there and Jan and I decided to go there as some sort of goodbye to the band, as they will go back into the studio for a new album very soon. They won’t be back before early 2009 and we just needed to do one more live show! It’s Carnival in Köln, so it’s a mad house everywhere, but we’re pretty comfortable up north of the city, where there’s no crazy Carnival stuff going on. In fact, we’re having our own party. What a gig it was! I’ve seen plenty of Client shows over the past few years, but this was definitely the best to date. Charlotte Hatherley is playing the bass as Client C and she adds so much power to the band and also vocally she does a great job. Am very curious if she’ll keep her place in the band. After the show we decide on a few Carnival drinks in the city centre and end up quite drunk at the hotel around 3 AM.

Monday afternoon I arrive home at 4:30, but not much time to get sorted. Have to go to the big BCC showcase in Nieuwegein, which is an important part of my work. All in all I made it and got through it quite easily. Now it’s full focus on my work, cause there’s busy times coming up. Am ready, but for sure I’ll think back of the great Nürnberg experience. One to remember, but there’s hopefully many more to follow…

Sweet Escape

2007-09-19T13:22:00Z

Well, here we are in the middle of some sort of Han tribute tour, which has been good so far to say the least. All started off at the Amsterdam ArenA last Thursday where we went to The Police. A good night out, only the experience of the ArenA itself was less pleasing. Way too crowdy and not too well organised for a concert that costs appx. 90 euro. I think this is the last time I went there for a concert, I guess only Madonna can get me back in there...

Last night we celebrated Han's birthday at Gwen Stefani's concert at the Ahoy in Rotterdam and that was one show! Was very surprised by it and very pleased with the way all was organised at the fabulous Ahoy. To get drinks, go to the toilet and get back at your place at the front only takes about 4 minutes in there and yeah it was a sell out crowd! Also support act CSS was brilliant, wil for sure buy their music after what I heard from them!

Having a day off for recovery and feel very good atm. Looking forward to complete the Han tribute tour next Wednesday when Wir Sind Helden play in Eindhoven. It will be a year since he passed away then and that must be remembered, in style with music and beer!

Damn, this mix I'm listening to is funky!

It's All Over But The Crying...

2007-08-01T19:32:50Z

OMG, just watched the Absolute Garbage dvd and after watching the fabulous documentary I started to get the shivers and started crying, out of nothing. First time in years I felt like this!

!!!!

2007-07-29T11:51:15Z

http://www.xMadMx.com

Lazy Sunday after a wild night out... And then discovering that the lovely Melissa Auf Der Maur is on the verge of releasing something big, loving it!

BACK!

2007-07-24T09:24:04Z

32 weeks since my last post, I'm ashamed... Excuses to everyone....

What's there to write about? Wel, a lot, but I won't be discussing everything that happened so far in 2007. Having a day off to lick my wounds after a great night out in Paradiso to see the ever amazing Blondie. They still rock, that's for sure! It's the 2nd time this summer I got to see them, but this one surely beats the festival gig at Bospop. Must be the good old Paradiso atmosphere ;-). Anyway, still not much changed over here, addicted to gigs as always and the rumours of Garbage hitting the roads again somewhere later this year is giving me a lot of energy. Now let's hope some of it is true...

In 2 weeks time, I'll be heading over to London again for a few days and a week later there's a trip to Liverpool lined up. Really look fwd to that, as I need a break to reload. Yeah, instead of going to some sunny resort, I'll be drinking pints in a pub in rainy UK... The good thing is that there's the prospect of seeing 2 Everton matches and probably a Prince gig at the O2 Arena, so I'll be enjoying my time there surely.

Btw, how much interest is there for a big party over in Amsterdam or London later this year or early 2008 and get everyone together again? If garbage doesn't do it, then perhaps we should?? Let me know, I'd love something like that to happen!

Maybe we can do it here ;-). It's re-opening, WOW!!!
http://www.teaserscafe.com/

and the beat goes on and on...

2006-12-08T15:09:55Z

Where to start. I kinda just go with the flow when it comes to full agenda's and lots of concerts lined up, but am happy I don't have that many lined up at the moment. The last couple of weeks have been great with lots of concerts that need to be mentioned. First there was Don Caballero on the 4th of November playing in Waterfront Rotterdam, which was a fabulous instrumental experience. I really love small venues with surprisingly good bands. A week later it was time for Juliette Lewis and her Licks to rock the Paradiso in Amsterdam! I can say it was one of the most entertaining concerts I've been to in a while. They get better and better everytime I see themand I really do consider them as the hottest band around since that gig! Unfortunately Jan couldn't join in as he was very sick, so I took my brother Danny along and he turned instantly into a big fan there. Went home instantly after the show, as work was waitinga again the day after.

A week later Jan and I went on a road trip to Düsseldorf to visit the Jaegermeister Rockliga, where Client was about to compete with Kid Alex & The Sickboys and Lexy & K-Paul in a battle. Before the concert we found out that Düsseldorf isn't one of the most exciting places to be in, but afer wandering around the very quiet area of the venue Tor 3, we found a place to have pre concert drinks. A bar full of dodgy people and cheap (but very good) German beer gets us in the mood for the gig. One name on the guest list this time, so one ticket needs to be bought to get in. The venue is very cool, typical German, that's why we always love t go there for concerts! The bar maids are stunning, so Jan and I spent the first 2 gigs at the bar to have a chat with them. We even considered missing the Client gig for it ;-). Anyway, was nice to meet the German fans again after a while and we talked a bit about Han, cause it was the first Client gig we visited since his death. Client played a short, but powerfull set, which in the end won them the contest! They played 2 new songs, the fabulous new single "When The Lights Go Out" and Zerox Machine, which I do consider the highlight of the gig. After the show we met up with Client and chatted for a while with the sweeter that sweet Sarah, who was so shocked about Han's death and said so many nice things to us. Sarah, we'll be forever grateful for the support! A late arrival in the city centre only gives us one option to have a post gig drink, which is a Greek bar with far to much annoyinng Greek music. A last drink in the hotel room later we sleep well. Another great adventure has ended, Han would have been proud!

A week later it's Rotown time, where new British sensation The Rifles play. Fresh, poppy sound in a venue which only holds about 200 people is the result, making me very curious about their further releases and shows. Looks like they'll be playing the bigger stages soon, that's for sure! After the gig, I met up wth the gorgeous Lonneke and had a very long chat with her about rock 'n roll and all around that. We've been in contact since the meeting, so who knows......

Friday the 1st of December, Ronald and I went to the Ahoy to see Placebo. For me, the support act Howling Bells is the main course, but must admit I have been falling in love with Placebo's new album Meds, so it's a great double bill for me. Howling Bells did a great job warming up Placebo's audience and their reply was good. Placebo's show was fabulous, only it was a bit lame and not like I've seen them before. All in all a good night out, where unfortunately Lonneke and I missed each other in the sold out Ahoy.

A day later it's time for Christina Aguilera to play in the same venue. After a heavy day at work, my brothers and I arrive well in time in the again sold out Ahoy. Way different style of music, but definately worth it! The first hour we get a Back To Basics show, where the stunning Aguilera shows she's more than a pop princess, but instead she's slowly becoming a diva of the stage! Some old hits in the last 30 minutes later, we can only conclude it was a great show. If you get the chance to see her, then you really should!

In between last weekends gigs I had to work my socks off, even the Sunday after Christina's gig. Well, we all know that working in retail business means lots of work in December, so no complains here. The coming weeks I'll concentrate on that without planning too much concerts etc. We'll be back for those somewhere in 2007...

back to basics

2006-11-10T19:32:49Z

Dear dear diary, there's so much to tell you... It's my first post since one of my best mates died and since then everything is flashing by so fast and I have the feeling I'm missing out on so much beauty around me and so much vital things in life at the moment. Life goes on even when you don't want it to for some time... In the past few weeks I saw Juliette And The Licks in London, P!nk in Rotterdam, Texas in Antwerp and boozed myself through time without enjoying it all in full. The day of the Licks playing in London was very emotional, considering that the Astoria was the place where I first met Han 5 years ago when garbage played there. I went completely mad during the gig and it was good to be part of jumping and slamming audience and come back from the gig with a completely sweated shirt. Also nice to be amongst Anne, Marta, Rob and Simon for this occasion, they definately helped me through that day.

Rock 'n Roll and sadness is a really short wire when you're at the ceremony a few days later, though both Jan and I gave it a rock 'n roll edge with Garbage (Soldier Through This) and Client (Everything Must End) songs being played in front of a 130 people attendence. All in all a well arranged day where we were more than proud of. Also the speech Jan and I held was very well received by everyone. So far the update on that issue, but there's so much more going on in the background when it comes to whoever has the right to this and that after his death. You really get to know people very well in these situations. Very much respect for Jan at the moment, cause he's arranging a lot very well, I wished I could be there more...

Texas at the Night Of The Proms on October the 21st was something very special. A totally non rock 'n roll audience and Sharleen being backed by an orchestra singing all classic Texas songs. Very nice indeed, also the appearance from Tears For Fears at the same night was great. Finished the night off in Antwerp city centre and slept like a rose in the more than average Alfa Empire Hotel.

A week earlier we witnessed P!nk live in the Ahoy in Rotterdam. Very close to the stage, I was very much amazed by the power and pace of miss Alicia Moore and let's not forget about her looks, she's amazing! I like gigs being this close to home, especially in the Ahoy which I consider as one of the best places for big concerts. In 3 weeks I'll be seeing Placebo (Dec 1st) and Christina Aguilera (Dec 2nd) in there and that's both something to look fwd to. Howling Bells will be support act for Placebo, which means a fabulous double bill that night!

Next Monday Jan and I will go to Juliette and the Licks in Paradiso and for those of you who want to see us having a blast there can watch the full gig online @ http://www.fabchannel.com/julietteandthelicks. A week later on Saturday the 18th, it's time for the official Han memorial at a Client show in Düsseldorf at the Jaegermeister Rockliga in Tor 3 (http://www.tor3.com). I so much look fwd to meet up with Client and their fans, been missing that a lot. It will be very emotinal though, as it was to be a day Han looked out for going to. It was one of the last things we discussed...

This week has been quite busy with work stuff. The store is doing very well at the moment and after a meet up with my region manager, I decided to stay at the company for now. A few more euro's to spend each month is also arranged there and I had the privilege to celebrate that with a meeting with Froukje de Both (http://www.froukjedeboth.nl) in Nieuwegein, what a gorgeous girl... A pity the meet up was work related ;-).

Han's condolence register

2006-09-29T11:23:05Z

Please leave your messages at one of these forums:

http://www.garbagedisco.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4740
http://www.client-online.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2283

Every reaction will be included in Han's condolence register next Monday, when he'll be cremated.

Many thanx in advance.

Michel

Han...

2006-09-26T23:34:55Z

What a sad day it is today... One of my best mates and long term Garbage/Client fan Han Gommeren died at the age of 43.

Han, we'll miss you. Drinks, gigs and parties will never be the same without you... What a shame it had to go this way...

Tomorrow I'm off to London, but my head is not really with the planned Juliette Lewis gig to be honest. Han would have wanted me to go and have a good night, so in his spirit I'll make the best of it. Need to organise stuff for the funeral as well the coming days...

O what a day, mf Monday...

2006-09-11T21:07:44Z

Glad this day is over, really difficult to get into this week after last week... Have every reason to feel like that after a week full of highlights and when I say highlights, I mean highlights!

Do you know the feeling that everything you touch turns into gold and everything you say and do works out ok? Well, that's exactly what I experienced over the last couple of days. All started off when we went to visit Madonna at the Amsterdam ArenA last Monday. The night itself had it all, a great gig, beautiful women, sex, drugs and rock 'n roll... What a performer Madonna still is and what a bless it was to be surrounded by so many cool and gorgeous new girlfriends :-P. The days after that I really felt like I was floating towards another big day in my life and work was almost going automatically well and not much to worry about. All in alll it was to become one of those days where you have been longing for your whole life and you've been dreaming of so many times, the Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool on Saturday the 9th...

After work last Friday I travelled towards Schiphol Airport immediately to take the Easyjet flight towards London Gatwick. A slight delay made me arrive there around 10.30 PM. Rob was there waiting to pick me up and as soon as we're driving towards his place, the first derby abuses start off. As soon as we arrive, the Budweisers are going down as fast as a TGV and we're both damn excited about the prospect of travelling to Liverpool on the Saturday. At 1 it's bed time, but we have to get up at 4 already to hit the road towards the 2008 European Capital of Culture. The roadtrip lasts about 4 and a half hours and as soon as we arrive in Liverpool, we head towards Goodison Park. The tickets are to be collected from the ticket office, which goes incredibly fast and is well arranged. We cross the likes of Beattie, McFadden, Phil Neville and the legend Nigel Martyn before getting ready to enter the stadium. A few Chang Beers later it's time for the Big Kick-Off. The atmosphere inside the home of Everton FC is absolutely amazing and from minute nr. 1 it's clear it's a BLUE coloured day! 24 degrees, lots of sunshine, a Tim Cahill goal and a brace by the newly born legend Andy Johnson later, it's 3-0 to Everton! For those who don't have a clue how that feels to an Everton fan, I can say that even beats good sex! Rob is not amused at all by the match and it takes a while before he can accept the trashing. The long drive back towards Kent is well ok for me, but Rob cannot stand the grin on my face and every now and then he just likes to throw me out of the car for it. I feel great and privileged I was part of one of the most amazing victories over Liverpool I can think of!

As soon as we arrive in Cranbrook it's time for drinks in a local bar. We're in time before the lock in and the staff in there is serving till everyone is satisfied enough to go home. In the end we go off at 1 AM, falling asleep almost instantly. It's been a long, memorable day, still can't believe I was part of it all.

The Sunday starts with a sleep in till 11 before we head off to Canterbury for a relaxing day in the sunshine. Still have a huge grin on my face from the day before and I just cannot help singing and cheering for most of the day. After the visit to the lovely city of Canterbury, it's time to head towards Ashford for some good shopping in a very nice outlet place. 2 hours later I have to take the Eurostar back home and as relaxing as it all started, it ends as well. Home sweet home it is at around 11 and I'm just in time to watch the highlights of this weekends matches and I dream away again to Goodison Park, to the lovely sunny Saturday, the best football Saturday in my life...

What a start!

2006-08-27T17:39:41Z

Tottenham 0 - Everton 2

holiday, celebrate

2006-08-25T11:28:06Z

August 11th
It's about time to leave NL for the main part of my holidays. Decided to change my travel schedule at last minute, as all the in- and outbound flights to London were still unsure. So instead of flying I jumped on the Eurostar from Brussels to Ashford. Without a doubt a very clever thing to do, cause security measures there were way more relaxed than at the airport for sure. Arrived at 9PM and Rob was there already waiting to pick me up. On the way to his place, we grabbed a pint in a bar full of hotties :-P, before heading to Cranbrook and watch Family Guy episodes till we fall asleep.

August 12th
Today's the day of the trip to Reading to see Feyenoord Rotterdam play against the local newly promoted Premier League side. A roadtrip brings us to Reading within 1 and a half hours and the stadium was very easily reachable from the motorway. The atmosphere around the Madejski stadium is quite relaxed and we decided to buy tickets for the away supporters section and cheer for Feyenoord. In the end the match finished in 2-1 for the home side and as it became clear later, we witnessed the last footsteps of Dirk Kuyt in a Feyenoord shirt there. After the match we drove to Tunbridge Wells and had some dinner, before heading back to Cranbrook for some drinks and watch The Green Mile. The Sunday will be a tough one, so a bit of relaxing is more than welcome.

August 13th
4 AM wake up call by mr. Watson is way too early, so I close my eyes again for half an hour. This ain't a time to wake up when you're on holiday right? Reason for the early wake up call is the Community Shield match between Chelsea and Liverpool we have planned. So before 5AM we already hit the road and before anyone else could reach the motorway, we're well underway to Cardiff, Wales. Once arrived we have quick breakfast and as soon as the pubs open, we're on lager. The pub we're in is an all Liverpool fans one, so I have to admit I had a tough time in there at some point. We met some nice people in there and all in all I had a good time with the Liverpool fans. I still hate that club btw! The Millenium Stadium is quite an impressive one, though it could have been the amount of alcohol making it look so. We're sat in the Chelsea end, which Rob obviously doesn't like, especially when Liverpool scored, he couldn't cheer. Liverpool won the match eventually 2-1 and a few drinks afterwards, it's time for a trip towards Bristol, where I have to catch my flight to Dublin. Flying time is around 11PM, so a late arrival in Dublin is the plan. With all kinds of bullshit at the airport and an expected delay, I'm at Dublin airport around 1AM. Called Jerome and a taxi drive later to his place, it's time to go to bed instantly. Am knackered and I'm starting to have a cold.

August 14th
Jerome already got to work as soon as I wake up and for me the day starts with a phonecall to Everton's box office. Arranged tickets for the Merseyside derby (September 9th), so the start is quite promising. Decided to do heavy shopping in the Dublin city centre this day and once I'm there, I am quite surprised on the amount of people doing the same. The high street is packed and there's street theatre everywhere. After the shopping I relaxed for a few hours in the park, before meeting up with Jerome to have a few pints. The cold I'm having is getting worse, so not too much partying in the end for me, but we managed to go into a few pubs to see a bit of Dublin night life. Good city for a quick visit!

August 15th
Travelled up to the Dublin bus centre to check out the bus to Belfast and as soon as I arrived, I bought a ticket for 8 euros and was on the bus almost instantly. Didn't really plan it beforehand, but as there wasn't much left for me to see in Dublin, I decided to go to Northern Ireland. Booked a bed in the Parkview Lodge and as soon as I arrive I fall in love with a gorgeous redhead at the reception. Is she for real or am I dreaming?? She showed me the room and told me stuff on where to go out etc., but couldn't really concentrate on what she said, what a girl, never seen anything like that before... Ok, back to the trip. Wandered around the Belfast city centre after I saw bits of the famous murals to look for some entertainment. Suddenly I cross a pub that's called The Spaniard, which looks well alive. Once inside it's very small, but the atmosphere is really fabulous. Got a tip from a guy sitting besides me to go and watch a jazz gig which was about to kick off at 9.30. So I did and was very shocked to see Chris entering the Improv Room as well. Didn't expect to meet him there, but it was nice to have a chat and a few drinks with him and his friends. The Jamie Baum gig was very good, very relaxing and in the end it was just the night out I needed in the middle of this hectic planned holidays. Even though I didn't see much of Belfast, I fell in love with it anyways, or was it just the girl at the Parkview Lodge that made me??

August 16th
Today it's travelling time again. The flight from Belfast to Liverpool is an early afternoon one, so a planned city trip with Chris didn't happen. Better luck next time I guess. Arrived in Liverpool city centre around 3PM and a quick check in at the International Inn later, I realise I'm back in the city I love so much. There's a gig from Howling Bells lined up this evening and before that I managed to watch the Dutch national team beat Ireland 4-0 and made some new friends in the pub I was watching it. At 9.30 I went to the venue called The Barfly. Met up with some guys I spoke to earlier on and we had a great time watching 3 bands in there. The Deconstructors started off, before The Vagabonds and the main act was the fabulous Howling Bells. What a band this is! If there's ever a chance of seeing this band, then do so, check http://www.howlingbells.com, it's well worth it! After the gig I managed to get my setlist signed and have a quick chat with the band to thank them for the surprisingly good gig. A few post gig drinks later I crash down at the hostel, another well spent day!

August 17th
Fashionate late wake up, but feel good after it for sure. An early afternoon walk towards to Goodison Park stadium later, I'm there at the ground I haven't been for years, but which does feel like a 2nd home to me. Managed to get into the stadium for a bit and took some pictures, before going to the megastore to buy myself some Everton FC goodies. Once back at the hostel, an Australian traveller enters the room who wakes me up from my afternoon sleep. The guy is called Dave and we soon decide to grab a pint around the corner. What we didn't know back then, that it was to become the craziest night of our holidays in the end, but we'll get to that part. A good meal at JD Wetherspoon and the incredible cheap drinks in there later, we head over to the Cavern Club for a good old Beatles experience. There's a Beatles cover band playing and the atmosphere in there definately feels like being thrown back into time straight into the sixties! The band is really good and there's people singing, dancing and cheering all over the place. By that time, Dave must have ordered 5 or more shots of Sanbucca and that mixed with a good amount of Jack Daniels, we're well underway to get completely wasted. After the Cavern Club we end up in some night club where everyone seems to be having a blast on whatever they took that night. We danced, drank and partied till the early hours and definately had the best possible night out. Totally out of nothing, those are the best normally!

August 18th
All this drinking and partying must be killing me at some point, but I am definately not at that point yet. The head is doing ok and there's no hangover or whatsoever from the crazy night out. Dave and I are supposed to meet up Rob for an Anfield stadium tour, but Rob is stuck in heavy traffic which took him almost 9 hours to get from Kent to Liverpool (nomaly 3 and a half). By the time he finally arrived, we go into Wetherpoons again for food and drinks. Rob obviously wants to get drunk after the terrible traffic he was in, so he found himself some good company to do so. The night looks a bit different than the previous one, but in the end it was as crazy as the Thursday one for sure! Can't really remember everything, but I do remember the amount of fit girls in the Australian Bar at the Liverpool city centre square. Once I reach the Campanile hotel, I lost both Dave and Rob and in the end we found our way back to the hotel all seperately. This is getting more and more crazy this trip.

August 19th
Dave wakes me up at 11 with a phonecall saying we should hurry up and that he's damn excited to watch the football! Rob already left for some sightseeing and shopping and this time it feels like a slight hangover I'm having. It's the day that I've been looking forward to for a long time, cause it's Everton-Watford we're visiting. As soon as I freshed up, we jump into a taxi towards Goodison Park and managed to get Dave one of the spare tickets left for sale the box office. It's quite early, but there's also Sheffield United-Liverpool to be screened live on tv, so we soon pay a visit to the nearest bar at 12.30. What's a bit of football without a pint we were thinking? So there we go again... 2 hours later it's time to enter the stadium and with Liverpool having drawn their match earlier on, everyone is in a good mood (except Rob :-P). Everton managed to get a deserved, but hard fought 2-1 victory, which is for sure the result we all can live with. The partying paid it's price though, so after the match we didn't do much expect a few drinks and some food. At 10PM we're back at the hotel to watch the football highlights and get to bed straight after that.

August 20th
Early wake up, cause it's check out time for us. Said goodbye to both Rob and Dave who go out and hit the road towards Kent and for me it's a relaxing few hours left before flying back home. Watched Manchester United-Fulham at the pub in the afternoon (only Pepsi for me...) and travelled up to the airport straight after that. The flight back home was well ok, but the actual arrival time of 11.30PM at home is a bit late in the end. Tomorrow it's back to work again, so don't really have much time to settle in and relax and do the necessary washing etc. All in all it was a fabulous time off, a bit different than I originally had in mind, but more than worth it for sure!

August 21st
10AM: meeting at work about the results of the last period. Am not there yet, still having the holiday in my head, so the day passes by without me taking notice of anything whatsoever. It will be a tough week, but we'll get through...

So If I Lose My Patience...

2006-08-05T08:23:14Z

I am nervous like a little kid! In a few hours we're off to Lokeren to see Texas, my goodness have I been looking fwd to this day!! What a way to start my 2 week break. Got so much to tell in here and I will as soon as I'm back from Belgium. Got lots of stuff planned, such as a trip to Northern Ireland and a visit to my beloved Everton in Liverpool! Can't wait...

But first, Sharleen, here I come!!

government falls! again...

2006-06-30T01:29:51Z

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5131240.stm

Can't we just be normal over here?? F##K politics, am fed up with all this bullshit!

short hair

2006-06-27T14:13:50Z

sad news....

2006-05-16T10:54:35Z

They are shutting down Teasers!!! The bastards!!

It's Rock 'n Roll, It's never ever gonna leave me

2006-05-15T21:40:47Z

A new week has started after a weekend to remember for sure. Decided last minute to take the Eurostar to London and travel on to Birmingham from there on to visit Client @ The Barfly. So there I was in Brussels on the Friday afternoon enjoying sunshine at the Grote Markt awaiting to board the Eurostar train. The idea of doing the trip came rather late as I woke up on Friday morning with the feeling I needed to do something extreme over the weekend. Contacted Rob and booked the ticket required. After a comfortable 2 hour trip, Rob was there to pick me up from Ashford station and soon after that we were having a pint in the pub. On Saturday we did the roadtrip to Birmingham, which we arrive at midday. After a quick check in at The Great Barr hotel, we go to the Sports Bar to watch both the English and Scottish FA Cup final. Lots of booze and extreme drama later, it's time to prepare for the Client gig.

The venue is called The Barfly and the party which is on is called We Get Kicks (www.myspace.com/wegetkicks). The last minute visit doesn't really bother for Client to put us on the guestlist and we soon discover that their playing in the backroom of the venue which is extremely small and intimate. Client got on stage at 12 and played 11 songs. The crowd was a bit lame at the start, but in the end the atmosphere got better and better whilst the gig went on and the last song "Let's Dance" is the climax with people dancing on stage. Emily invited me on there and I couldn't help dancing with her for most of the song :-P. After the gig the girls thanked me for coming all the way from NL for this gig, which was a nice gesture.

It's Rock & Roll / In It For The Money / Tuesday Night / Down To The Underground / Client / Radio / Here & Now / Pills / Pornography / Rock 'n Roll Machine // Let's Dance

Post gig drinks and a bit of partying afterwards we head back to the hotel, which was quite a long way from the venue. Quite drunk I fall asleep like a rose, what a day...

The trip back from Birmingham to London went pretty fast, but the trip back to NL was almost brutally cancelled, as London Waterloo station was shut down for both income and outbound trips from Eurostar. Luckily I had time left to travel to Ashford and catch the train over there and in the end I was lucky to get on the train with only 30 min. delay on the original schedule, with people having had over 3 hour delays on the same train. All in all a successful trip again to the UK and again a great experience to see Client live!

Bright Sunshiny Day!

2006-05-05T16:04:24Z

What a lovely day off it is! Sunshine all over the place and shiny happy people everywhere. It's the day of freedom in NL, the day we celebrate the end of WWII and take a look at the lucky situation of feeling free and celebrate. All over NL there's bands playing free open air gigs like every year. For some reason I don't feel like joining in all the celebrations, much rather prefer to drink a cold lager on my balcony, relax a bit and listen Lou's Twisted Disco :-D.

Favourite albums rotating nowadays:

The Zutons - Tired Of Hanging Around
(Fabulous new album by the Liverpool based rockers!)

Texas - Red Book
(Best album to date by the legendary Scottish band, not joking here!!)

Client - The Rotherham Sessions
(This demo makes me damn curious about their forthcoming 3rd album!)

Goldfrapp - Supernature
(First class electro pop, in 3 weeks it's time to see them twice!)

P!nk - I'm Not Dead
(She keeps on surprising me, go and see her in October!)

Satisfaction Guaranteed

2006-04-24T17:44:09Z

Ok, a bit more info on last Saturday's mad house in Cologne Underground is here. A fabulous night with a mixture of old and 4 brand new songs in combination with a crowd full of hardcore fans made it a night to never forget for sure! The last song "Down To The Underground" was very special, with a number of fans on stage, amongst them, me and Han were the lucky ones to join in ;-). The rest is explained in the pix below:

Down To The Underground!

2006-04-23T21:03:01Z

The new squad

2006-04-10T19:17:00Z

BCC Spijkenisse, 3 days to go!

KAMPIOENEN, OLÉ OLÉ!!

2006-03-31T22:24:19Z

Excelsior kampioen Gouden Gids Divisie 2005/2006

you've got mail

2006-03-15T16:24:34Z

"Hey jacky_cane,
Your mutual friend redgilda has noticed that you last updated your journal on LiveJournal 3 weeks ago! Be a friend and go post."

Yeah I know, it's pathetic how rarely I post, but my life isn't that exciting apart from work, work and work... :-P

An update is coming either tonight or tomorrow, that's a promise!