Yummy smells~

*Random post ahead, be warned* ;)

For some reason I got to thinking about smells...
There are some smells that I always love to smell and that make me happy in one sense or another.
Here are some of the smells I absolutely love:

♥- Vanilla sugar: My mum uses this every Friday for the pancakes and I can't help smiling when I pick up and smell the paper packets the sugar comes from. =] I have a weak for that smell.

♥- Tea or Perfume stores: Simply heaven, especially when it's cold outside or raining. To enter a store with a flowery or sweet scent makes me feel so happy. =3

♥- Rain on dry earth scent: There's even a noun for that scent; Petrichor. I find it so nice that when on hot summer days it ends with rain, thunder and lightning. Then when that too has passed, to fall asleep with that lovely smell coming from my opened windows. Hmmm ^^

♥- Rose syrup in milk: The scent reminds me of my Chinese grandma. I have no idea why, she may have made the beverage for me a lot when I was little, or she may have worn a perfume with that scent, I can't remember. It's just the scent that brings me happy memories I can't remember x'D If that even makes sense.

♥- Kretek cigarettes: I don't smoke and I would never do that either, but the smell of these Indonesian cigarettes I do love a lot. My grandpa has had a time he liked to smoke these and my dad has also tried these. These cigarettes have herbs in them; clove, which makes them smell good =) However they're still cigarettes, so no good for the lungs and all xP

♥- Various foods. This is a given, but there are some foods I love to smell in particular; my mum's split pea soup, baked leek dish and macaroni. ^^ And BAKING!! =D Especially cookies and cake, or sweet buns from the bakery. x'D I love to smell food~

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Introduction Camp

Next week a new semester at uni will start off with introduction lessons for the 1st year students and empty schedules for the 2nd year students. x'D

To give the 1st year students a good chance to get to know each other, Tanuki (my study association) organized a camp for them.
As a 2nd year student I was able to join the camp with one of my best friends (who is also my classmate) and lead the 1st year Korean students.
Tanuki is there for Japanese and Korean Studies, but since Korean Studies is seriously outnumbered by their Japanese counterpart, J and I tried to be representatives for our study as best as we could! =)

Oh, and I did something that gave me a full week of aching muscles last year...
I attended a Yosakoi workshop! Yosakoi is a pretty stamina-building Japanese folk dance. Even though "folk dance" may sound boring or lame, Yosakoi is very much the opposite! It's very energetic and fun to watch and if you participate it's good for your stamina and flexibility. And it's something you do as a team, so it's socially rewarding as well! ^^
Although I have legs that are sore from muscle ache right now, I joined the Yosakoi team and I'm going to practise at least once a week (max 3 times a week) with them! It'll be killing at first, but so awesome when I'll become stronger, more flexible and loose~ xP

Here's a dance I partially learned during the workshop, called "Soran Bushi". This dance is physically the most exhausting, they told me. x]


My books for the new semester have arrived!! =D Can we then now start the new semester?? *blink blink* ^^

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

5 Love Languages

Some time ago I found this interesting article.
As you may have guessed from earlier posts, I'm quite interested in the human mind and psyche. Not surprisingly I want to talk about this psychological article! =)

Apparently there are 5 love languages. Generally people "speak" one of the following 5 languages:

1. Words of Affirmation

Actions don’t always speak louder than words. If this is your love language, unsolicited compliments mean the world to you. Hearing the words, “I love you,” are important—hearing the reasons behind that love sends your spirits skyward. Insults can leave you shattered and are not easily forgotten.

2. Quality Time

In the vernacular of Quality Time, nothing says, “I love you,” like full, undivided attention. Being there for this type of person is critical, but really being there—with the TV off, fork and knife down, and all chores and tasks on standby—makes your significant other feel truly special and loved. Distractions, postponed dates, or the failure to listen can be especially hurtful.

3. Receiving Gifts

Don’t mistake this love language for materialism; the receiver of gifts thrives on the love, thoughtfulness, and effort behind the gift. If you speak this language, the perfect gift or gesture shows that you are known, you are cared for, and you are prized above whatever was sacrificed to bring the gift to you. A missed birthday, anniversary, or a hasty, thoughtless gift would be disastrous—so would the absence of everyday gestures.

4. Acts of Service

Can vacuuming the floors really be an expression of love? Absolutely! Anything you do to ease the burden of responsibilities weighing on an “Acts of Service” person will speak volumes. The words he or she most want to hear: “Let me do that for you.” Laziness, broken commitments, and making more work for them tell speakers of this language their feelings don’t matter.

5. Physical Touch

This language isn’t all about the bedroom. A person whose primary language is Physical Touch is, not surprisingly, very touchy. Hugs, pats on the back, holding hands, and thoughtful touches on the arm, shoulder, or face—they can all be ways to show excitement, concern, care, and love. Physical presence and accessibility are crucial, while neglect or abuse can be unforgivable and destructive.

One of the ways to make a relationship work is learning to speak the other's love language.

My love language is something between Quality Time and Physical Touch. I absolutely love back hugs! And dancing is definitely something I want to do with my future boyfriend (unless of course he can't or has no interest). To me it wouldn't matter just what we do, as long as we see each other regularly. I don't need to hear "I love you" every time, as long as I feel it through actions and attention. I'm not so much a kisser, but I love holding hands and hugs ^-^
Ah, and the atmosphere should be playful and full of purpose, not heavy with romance... x) I guess I'm cheesy, not romantic.

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Source: 5 Love languages

Shy...

It's one of the things I've been struggling with since ages~!
When I look back I realize I've come a long way already, but I'm still not satisfied with where I am now...
Let me tell you something about my life... :)

I was born first of my family's next generation. Having no siblings or cousins, I was used to grownups around me. After one and a half year, my sister was born. Since she was still too young to play with, I continued playing with grownups or on my own.

At the age of 4 (when my sister and I had grown so close we were inseparable), I went to school for the first time. I wasn't homesick, but I had a hard time getting used to being surrounded with so many kids of my age. I didn't play or talk, I just sat and watched them, trying to figure things out. I must have been boring for them. So, naturally I didn't make any real friends and spent most of my time alone. I don't recall ever being sad about it, though. And my mum told me that I had said it was fun and that I had lots of stories to tell, when she asked me about school.

In the first few years of "Basic School*", kids usually ignore the "different" kids, because they play with the kids they like. However, in the 3rd or 4th grade the picking on these kids begins. And so I, too, was being picked on. Not often, there were days nothing happened, but usually they would give me nasty looks, comments, joke about me or gossip. I wasn't much fun to pick on probably, because I would just ignore them. I never fought back and I never cried in front of them. I was just too shy. Apart from the usual, there were these more serious incidents too. Once, they even tried to beat me up, I think. They came with a group of around 6 boys and circled around me until I stood against the wall of the school. It was when I was waiting for my sister to go home for lunch. I can't exactly remember anymore. I don't think anyone threw a punch, but I don't remember how it ended. Maybe it had been a threat only? At that time I had no confidence in myself, I thought I was ugly and weird. At home I felt best, because none of it mattered and I could be my happy self. I had one best friend who understood me and cared about me no matter what, that friend was my sister.

When I went to "Middle School*", I knew nobody and was determined to leave the past behind me and start afresh. Something told me it wasn't my fault I wasn't liked at my previous school. And I did make quite some friends at my first day already! I was so happy, but I was also terrified of losing them. To be more specific, I was afraid they would stop liking me. I was shy, so I couldn't dominate the attention (which was actually a good thing), but the strain of staying their friend was so high it kept me from being me. Which made me a silent shell of a human. (Basically I wasn't much different from my very first day at Basic School). I didn't know what my peers did in their free time, I didn't know what the majority liked, fore I hadn't had much contact with anyone else than my sister. Between us there had developed a completely different culture of interests. So in my first year of Middle School I learned a lot of social stuff; I finally learned how to interact with my peers, but I was far from socially active. The strain of trying to tie my friends to me was too heavy and I ended up losing all but 2 of my original group of friends. They just lost interest and as of now, I realize that even these 2 have never been true friends. They, just like me, needed someone to be with. I think that part of my shyness and inability to open up to be me made it impossible for me to make true friends. Although there is one friend I made on my own that year, who I still regard as a true friend and that is L. With her time doesn't change our friendship. Even if we haven't seen each other for months, it's like there hasn't been any passing of time in between. In the first 2 years of Middle School we were in different classes, but the 3rd and 4th year we were classmates and pretty inseparable too! We had a nice class (in my opinion). I was generally liked, but the class was divided in groups still. L was less liked, because in our class she was most "different". I feel like we understood each other.

In the years after, I got better and better at interacting with people. With that came more confidence in myself and I forgot about ever finding myself ugly. Then there was this small incident that even proved to me that I wasn't ugly. Years after Basic School I ran into an old classmate of my sister who used to bully me and he kind of gaped at me in disbelief asking whether it really was me. x) And there was my Dutch teacher (kind of a creeper, though) at "Middle Professional Education*" who said that I had no reason to feel shy because I was 'intelligent and beautiful'... That year was a bad year though, because I made a stupid mistake by telling a teacher my friends were ditching class. I didn't tell it on purpose, I was just being honest, but I didn't realize what I had done. These friends had actually never been my friends to begin with... And so I sat in class alone again.

After that I continued making friends and losing them again as I didn't make many true friends, except for a few of them.

And then WOVOX happened. I was just looking for a company to have some professional training. Never could I have foreseen the turning point they resembled in my life. Because of the company's freedom policy and the attitudes of the people working there, I could be myself and I knew I was accepted for being myself. Actually, it was better to be myself, I needed to be myself in order for things to work well. And it was such a relief! =) Finally I had the courage to be there, to open up to the world. It brings me energy to be the happy me. I made a vow never to close up again, because it is actually a lot harder to live that way.

Even though sometimes I still feel like taking a step back and crawling back into the shadows of safety. I know that is a cowardly feeling and it's not doing me well, but I don't think I'll ever lose my shyness completely.
When meeting new people I really have to push myself to talk to them. I know all the opportunities and good things there are to meeting new people, but it's also scaring me to talk to people I don't know. Usually it's even scaring me to talk to people I know but am not that close to (anymore).
I hope to learn how to act natural in front of people that intimidate me, someday. I want to be able to have casual contact also with people who I'm awkward with. Even if the awkwardness will never go, I do want to be able to hide it.

* We have a different schooling system. From age 4 - 12, one goes to "Basic School", then from age 12 - 16/17/18 one attends "Middle School", which is followed by either "Middle Professional Education", "Higher Professional Education" or "University". I translated the Dutch names to English ones.

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Happy Panda~! ^^

This week has been a good week for me! =D

I'm having fun time with friends, good results in my study and I'm taking up playing the piano again! =)

The downside is that I'm having some trouble getting enough sleep... ^^"
Someone told me once; there are three things for a student, but you can only pick two.
1. Good grades
2. A social life
3. Enough sleep

So, I guess you can say I picked good grades and a social life... ^^" I usually don't sleep enough. ㄱ.ㄱ
Besides these three things I also try to spend some time on hobbies. I mentioned I started playing the piano again and I also have my embroidery to finish... And that's not all, I want to write and draw too... xD
There should be 25 hours in a day, no, make that a good 40 hours in a day, with less than a third needed on sleep ;)

Come to think of it, we humans haven't got very sustainable batteries... xP We need a third of our life to charge and that's not all, we have to feed too... We also have a ridiculously (s)low memory (even if compared to a simple MP3). But, we can develop, something no device can do by itself (yet)! ^^"
Sorry, this is horribly off-topic! ㅋㅋㅋ

^^ Something fun happened on the 6th (of March, this year). One of our classmates prepared song texts to K-pop songs! =) And so we ended up watching a 2PM MV ("10 out of 10") in class! xP Our Korean teacher helped us with the translation of the chorus and then we sang it together! ^^ 아주 재미있었어요! So much fun, because our Korean teacher is around 50 years old, I think, but she really seems to like these kind of things still! =]

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Efteling (delayed post)

^^ Yay, first post in February! =D

Yesterday I went to the Efteling (an amusement park with a theme of fairies, witches, trolls, Laafs and such)! =)
It was a lot of fun, I went with people from the various commissions of my study association. We were with 16 people. ^^
There was the so-called "Winter-Efteling", which meant that the park was especially decorated and accustomed for the Winter. The ironic thing was that yesterday also the first real snow has fallen! =) In January some snow had already fallen, but it were just a few flakes and they barely stayed on the ground without melting. So yesterday, when the real snow fell, the scenery was really pretty and cold...
^^ I got to know a few more people, and some other people I got to know even better! =)
In the beginning we went to every attraction with all of us, but after a while it become difficult and burdensome to wait for everyone to gather, so we broke up in 2 groups.
With the group I stayed in, we were with 8, we pretty much went in every attraction available. A few attractions were closed (the outside roller coasters and everything that involved water), but at the attractions that were opened there were no rows, we could just walk through. ^^ So I've been in the VogelRock (an indoor roller coaster). It was so much fun! J, a friend of mine went in too, but she's scared of roller coasters, so she screamed almost the complete ride xD She taped it... It was so funny, although you can't see a thing, because it's dark in there, you can hear her scream. "No, no, no, (x20) no- AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH *breathing* AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH"
I also went with 5/8 into a swinging boat (Vliegende Hollander), it was so relaxing! xD At first, everyone lifted their hands up when going up, but in the end, I was the only one still doing that.. xD Turned out they all felt scared a little, I wasn't.. Which I thought was really surprising, because when I was 13 I still was scared to death for anything daring in amusement parks! So how come I went from scared person to complete daredevil within 8 years?!

Scary things weren't the only attractions we went in.. ^^ We also visited the "Fata Morgana" (An indoor attraction in which you go by boat through a scenery of Oriental and Middle Eastern scenes). It was really pretty~ ^^ There were tigers and belly dancers and flute players and all sorts of daily life scenes of the (rather stereotypical) wealthy village in the Middle East. I've never been in the Middle East ever, so I can't really tell whether they exist like that, or whether it's just our Dutch view on the Middle East (in peace times).

And of course we've also been in the "Droom Vlucht" (some sort of roller coaster that's slow, showing various scenes of fairies, trolls and all sorts of forest creatures). It's one of my favorite attractions, because it's so beautifully made and it's like entering another world for a bit. ^^
That day we did a lot more, but it's difficult to tell everything... If you live in or near the Netherlands, I really advise you to visit the theme park yourself! =) It's the Efteling in Kaatsheuvel.

Because of all the lovely snow, the public transport was completely disturbed. =( Around 1PM, we heard trains weren't riding as they should and Utrecht (which is in the middle of our country) was completely blocked. When we left the park at 6PM, we though things would be better... Well, we thought wrong!
We waited for half an hour for a bus that would bring us from Kaatsheuvel to Den Bosch train station. In Den Bosch we decided to check for trains first and then get some food. There wasn't any problem there... Me and J ordered together and I carried our food until the train arrived at the station, that's where trouble arose. I knew we (me, J and K) had to catch the train, but because of all those people, I lost sight of them, so I just got on the train. Since I still carried J's food, I had to find her! Otherwise I'd probably just send a text saying I'll meet them at the station we had to get out. J thought the same because she called me and I saw K waving her arms, 3 compartments away. The train was so incredibly packed that it took me a lot of effort getting one compartment closer to them. But that wasn't enough... I had 2 left to go (at that time I thought it was only one more). At the next stop I'd try again, I thought, but during the next stop, I was pushed away and so before I could try again, every passage was already blocked. The stop after that, I tried going via the outside. That worked, but now I noticed they were one compartment more away! I couldn't go outside anymore, I had to get through via the inside! Luckily people were making way for me and I could reach my friends! =D
Unfortunately, more trouble was coming our way... K could take a train to her parents' house, but J and I were still over an hour away from our homes. In Utrecht, traffic was still blocked... We waited for a long time before we could take a train that would bring us just a little closer to our hometowns. Eventually, Y, J's boyfriend (with whom she lives together) came to pick us up from the train station we were stranded on, which was actually half an hour driving from J & Y's house.
My dad would come pick me up from their house, but my mum thought it was better if I stayed over there and then have my dad pick me up the day after, because he had to be in that city anyway! Luckily it was no problem and we had fun during our little sleepover. =)

And still drama wasn't over... When I began writing this story, I was still at J & Y's place, waiting for my dad to pick me up. HE NEVER PICKED ME UP!!! I went to the city and met J's mum when doing grocery shopping and having coffee. My dad called, he was waiting for the "wegenwacht" (the road service) because he had car trouble. He called several times and my mum told me it'd be better if I just tried taking the train... Eventually I got home by train, before my father got home... We have a new car now.

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

10 insights about "heated arguments"

A few days ago I was a witness to an adult argument (read: childish argument between adults)...
It was an ugly heated argument between two women at the age of 50/60, who don't really like each other. I won't repeat what has been said...
However I kept thinking about all the things about arguments my mum has taught me.
I find these insights very helpful to remember when I notice I'm about to argue (I only argue with my sister though x])
So, I decided to share them! =)

1. An argument is always 2 (or more) people's fault.
One can't argue by him/herself. "(S)he started..." is just a prelude to "and I continued." If the other doesn't respond to it in a heated way, it can never turn into an argument, it'll just stay a nasty comment.

2. One can't make the other do/think/stop something.
At some point in an ugly heated argument someone will tell the other to stop the arguing or question the other why (s)he doesn't stop. This has absolutely no use, it will only cause another response.

3. One cannot win an argument, ever!
It doesn't matter how many times one repeats their opinion in whatever new way, the other will never fully (or even partially) admit to agree.

4. Everyone talks, but nobody really listens.
Yes, they'll listens to each other's words, just to find something to disagree on next...

5. Rooted irritation surfaces.
Really heated arguments usually aren't because the topic of their argument is so dear to them. It usually is fueled by irritations that finally come to burst in confrontation. It can be a certain attitude one can't stand from the other or earlier events that caused the other to get irritated.

6. The last word is the word of the "winner".
And so the argument will turn into a battle of the last word. The results will be ugly and they'll say mean things that they don't mean.

7. Physical fighting is a sign of fear.
When one feels likely to lose the "battle of the last word", they might use physical strength to claim their dominance in the argument.

8. Calling names is also a sign of fear.
However, besides it being a display of dominance (by humiliating the other) out of fear, it can also be some sort of reassurance of having the last word and being the "winner". This is an illusion however, because calling names will definitely urge the other to respond.

9. Adults in heated arguments lose their dignity.
When adults fight in an ugly, childish way, their dignity is completely ruined in the face of the onlookers and each other. They'll just look ridiculous and should know better than to behave in such a immature way.

10. There is no satisfaction.
Although it might feel releasing at first, it will be gone in the end. Even when the other "loses" by crying or withdrawing, the "winner" won't feel like a winner. Instead, they'll feel like a dignity-deprived, guilty loser.

The best thing to do when you're in an argument; just stop arguing when you notice the other (or you) is heated. Although it's a tough thing to do, stop talking. If you can do that, start searching for agreements on the topic and comment on those. =)
In an argument we easily forget the things we agree on and hammer instead on the things we disagree on, making it look like there's no agreement at all.

=D But best of all: don't argue~ ^^ ♥

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

New keyboard options ㅅ_ㅅ

Oh wow! =D I found out something crazily cool~ ^ㅡ^v
I found out I can do even more with my Korean keyboard =D
The thing is, with the key control comes an option to draw the letter / hangul character / hanja character and then the letter I'm looking for appears and I can immediately add it to whatever I was typing! °^一^°
Oh, and look:
웇 = girl
유 = boy

Haha! ^▼^ I'm such a dork~

ㅅ_ㅅ Just wanted to share my happiness~ :)

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Hangul Keyboard!!!

Woah~ Am so happy right now~ ^-^

Maybe you still remember a post from me about wanting to be able to type in the Korean script? (Probably not xD)
Well, I finally got my wish! :)
Haha, if I had known it then, I could have typed in Hangul years earlier already! xP
The thing is, I finally learned how to do that, with just a simple adjustment to my Windows settings (pretty easy!)...

And now I can freely switch between Hangul and ABC, with just the ALT on the right side of my keyboard x)

아싸~! =D

Oh, and I bought glowing stickers for on my keyboard~ ^ㅡ^v
^w^" I'm still waiting for my stickers to come to me~ xD (They're being shipped... o_O)

♥

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Wrap it up~ =9

^^ I have this delicious wrap recipe!! =9
My mum made this a few months ago, and I want to share it with you, because it was super delicious!! =D

What you need have:
Food:
~♥ Wraps (as many as you wish)
~♥ Smoked salmon (slices)
~♥ Garlic butter, or cream cheese with herbs/garlic
~♥ Cucumber
~♥ Roasted pine nuts
~♥ Green pesto

Utensils:
~♥ Flat cooking pan
~♥ Knive to cut the cucumber
~♥ Flat plate to cut on
~♥ Spoons for the garlic butter, pesto and (if you need to) the pine nuts

What you need to do:
Preparation:
1) Get every ingredient / utensil steady! xP
2) Cut the salmon in slices (if that's not been done already).
3) Cut the cucumber horizontally, so that long strips are formed. Cut these so that strips of about 10 centimeter (4 inches) are formed. Whether you peel the skin off first, later or not, that's up to you! ;)

Wrap it up~:
1) Warm the wraps in the flat pan for a few seconds so they are nicely warm.
2) Put some garlic butter (or cream cheese) on the wrap. No need to be modest about the amount, just put it on! ;)
3) Put one or two slices of smoked salmon on it.
4) Add two strips of cucumber to it.
5) Spread 3 tea spoons of green pesto on the wrap.
6) Decorate the wrap with roasted pine nuts and wrap it up! =)

Have a nice meal! =D
♥

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

First party as a "University Student" ^-^

Haha! Tonight's going to be my first real party as a university student!
I don't know why that feels like something big, but I just wanted to blog about it.

So, here's the situation: I'm sitting in my room now, about to pack my bag. At 9:15 PM I've agreed with a friend to meet, so we can dump my stuff at her place and head to the party. =) The party in question is a birthday party of two guys from our study association. Almost 60 people are going to come to the party! x) It's crazy!!

I'll see lots of friends I made at the Tanuki camp again! It's going to be very nice, I think! (I don't know the right word for it; "nice" seems inferior, "great" sounds sarcastic, "fantastic" sounds fake, if not sarcastic as well...). The party will be held until 5:00 AM! I don't think I'll stay right to the end, though. I know I can, but it's just too late. xP Anyway, got to pack my bag now!

Oh, about getting drunk... I won't! x) Never been either! ^^ But maybe I'll have a little something, not beer thought, I find that nasty...

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Last day of my internship!

Yesterday was the 'go away party' of my internship!
After 3 months of inspiring work, the time has come to start a new chapter in my life...
Goodbye WOVOX (the company I had my internship at), goodbye MIC, goodbye Higher Education...

...but: Hello University, hello Koreastudies!

Anyway, to get back to the thing I wanted to talk about.
Besides my goodbye party, it was also the co-founder's birthday yesterday. He wasn't present that day, but we were going to do a lipdub for his birthday...
I had no idea what a lipdub was either, but I'll explain it now.
The point in a lipdub is that you do what the lyrics say and you lipsync along with it.

Example: the lyrics are 'I love you'. You make a heart sign and pretend to sing 'I love you' xP

Here's our lipdub clip! =P

Ah, by the way, it's me with the big 'we celebrate'-canvas with ducklings on it! =)

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Introduction of my new study!

Today I went to my new study's introduction day!! =D
As you may already know, I switched studies and my new study is "Korean studies".
Shortly explained: I'll learn the Korean language, the culture, the history, the literature and the traditions.

On Tanuki (that's the study association) camp I already got to know 3 Korean students (we were the only 4 that attended the camp).
Today I found out we're with 22 in total, of which I have already befriended 5. =)
The other 3/4 of my classmates I haven't spoken to, because there was no time at all to get to know them.

During the introduction day (which was actually an introduction hour) our 5 teachers introduced themselves and explained what the first semester was going to bring us. They answered questions we had and gave us info about our schedule. One of our teachers is a native speaker and I really look forward to the language lessons!! =D

And the most amazing thing I heard today? We (the whole class, so all 22 Korean students) are going to Korea for half a year, in our sophomore year!!! =^-^=
This is going to be AWESOME!

♥

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Tanuki Camp!

Whuuuuuuuuut?

:)

On the 24th of this month I'm going on introduction camp with my study association! =)

Actually some things have changed during the past months, I switched studies once again. I stopped doing MIC (Media, Information and Communication) and I used my first year diploma to apply for University! =D I'm now going to study Koreastudies at the University of Leiden! *big smile that can't be erased*

To get back to the topic of this post, I also registered at a study association, called Tanuki. It's for students from Korean- and Japanese studies. Tanuki has organized a camp for students to get to know each other and to have a good start of their study! =)

I've visited Tanuki's site and seen some photos of the camps of previous years and it looks like a lot of fun! =D I can't wait to go!

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

The Black Market~!

^-^ I'm soo looking forward to my birthday on the 2nd of June~
Saturday (the 4th of June), I'm going to Beverwijk with my friends (to celebrate), to the Bazaar, which is an Oriental black market! =D

You know what that means~ *hint, hint*

Okay, so maybe you don't...
^^ Anyway, I'll be searching for Korean black bean paste and other ingredients to make Jjajangmyeon~! =D
Haha, yep! It's the first Korean dish I'll try and I'm kinda nervous!
...Too bad there's no Korean market anywhere near my place (Beverwijk is pretty far away) （︶︿︶）

So I hope I can find my ingredients! xD The Bazaar is really nice anyway~!
I'll blog about it soon! (If I don't forget!)
Maybe I'll have photos to share too! (If I don't forget that either!)

Bye for now~ ♥

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Simplicity and Complexity

Two words which are, in my opinion, very important in human life.
I think we have to be able to live simple, without long kept grudges in our heart or feelings of apathy that are consistently present. A simple life with a simple set of mind. To love what comes your way and to accept the suffering that's on your path of life. Like that, not to forget, but to accept. When accepted something, you'll be able to get past it, to move on. As for discussions and fights, be simple, forgive the other and don't hold a grudge, for you can't ever be the same with that person if you don't make up and forgive (of course you can pretend, but that ruins your sincerity and your simplicity).

As for complexity, which in itself is of course more complex and therefore more difficult to appoint to your life in a single sentence. However, I'll try my best to explain what I think. And that is, that we should be very thoughtful about what we do and what we say. A certain complexity is important. We shouldn't just go about and let our emotions and our desires, our sympathetic and apathetic feelings, our fears and the opinions of the people surrounding us rule our actions. If all the above should not, what should rule our actions then? you might want to know. Well, (excuse my opinion if yours is different) I think it is your conscience (complexity) and your love(simplicity).

By conscience I mean your sense of right or wrong. Everybody (in general, I'm leaving out the exceptions here) has a conscience that tells him/her what is good to do and what is not. Sometimes it gets difficult to follow your conscience, because you feel you have to do something that you find scary, or that'll hurt your pride, or that you just dislike. When following your conscience, you'll find that it won't tell you how. E.g. when you need to speak or write to someone for a certain reason, it won't translate the thoughts you want to transfer into words. However, when you do start writing, you will know (through your conscience) whether the sentence you put down will come off the way you planned them to (mostly, because it depends on the other's set of mind too).

By love I mean your sense of appreciation for your surroundings. The people, but also their creations and nature itself. To recognize the wonders that happen everyday under your very nose. To realize what beauty lies in the small things. A cat crawling through high grass, a small boy running in circles, the sound of rain and thunder, a construction worker eating his lunch from a box. It's all nothing out of the ordinary, but in some sense it is special, perhaps even precious. Just like that, we should simply love, appreciate the world, in my opinion.

As a Christian, it comes natural to love everything, for I believe all is made by God. And if I love God, shouldn't I love everything that has come from His hands as well? I can understand that for non-religious people this is no argument, of course, but if the world is not beautiful and worthy to cherish, can you tell me one thing that is completely unworthy of appreciation? I can't.

Of course it is rather ridiculous to walk around and stare at the clouds in wonderment, but I think we should not forget what beauty is surrounding us every day.
I see it like this. When you have a good friend, you won't go about telling everyone what great a friend that person is, and neither would you watch that friend in amazement from day to day. No, you don't do that with a friend. You take care of your friend, adore your friend, you like all the good qualities and accept all the flaws. And once in a while you think back of your friendship with that person and be thankful for everything. All the while you haven't forgotten to appreciate your good relationship. That is how it should be with friends, but also with the rest of the world.

~~~~~~

^-^ Quite a long piece of mind. x] I got inspired by a book called "The Elegance of the Hedgehog", written by Muriël Barbery. It is translated from French by Alison Anderson. Barbery has used lots of philosophy in her book. "The Elegance of the Hedgehog" is mostly consistent of conversations and thoughts within the main characters about art, intelligence and life in general. If you want to read something that is more than a story, something that brings you a different and refreshing look on life (and a good laugh once in a while!), I definitely recommend this book to you! =]

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Creative writing~ ^-^

A few months ago (wow, time flies fast!) I posted about a course in creative writing...
Well, since I have had several lessons already (next week is already the last lesson), I realized I should write about it because I haven't even mentioned it! (shame on me! xD)

So, here I am, writing about writing again =P (meta-writing, I think you could call it that, LOL)
*sigh* So, where should I start?

First of all, I really enjoyed the lessons, although I had a somewhat different expectation of it all. x] Actually, I thought it would be more like the lessons I got from my teacher at the Dutch creative writing course... but they were different. At the first lesson, our teacher handed out a sheet on which all the homework assignments/exercises were explained. In the Dutch course we always got the assignment for the coming lesson during the current lesson. In the International course we also give more feedback on each other's story. Because everyone gives feedback one by one, there's over 10 different views on your story, which is great, because no story is bad nor good, however it can improve so that more people like it. The previous lesson (and the upcoming last lesson) were/are held in the personal art studio of our teacher, complete with glasses of wine and large pillows! xD Isn't that stylish? Haha, the atmosphere is really good~! ^0^ I have started to like red wine! =0

Then, of course, what it's all about. I know that (since I talk about writing) you would like to know what I've been writing then... Well~ That's actually quite a lot.
Let's start with an assignment (which was the first assignment during the first lesson). For the assignment our teacher had the group split in two. I was in the first group and we had to observe the body language of someone from the other group. We would make duos and then begin a conversation to get to know the other person by asking questions and while having that conversation we had to watch the other's body language. Then we had to write a 100-word piece based on the body language (that was the assignment for group 1, group 2 had a different assignment, but I forgot...). Actually, it turned out rather unimaginative, and a little embarrassing even... I have read it aloud in the group, but I'm not confident enough to post it, so I won't (believe me, it's not worth reading either...)

Anyway, my latest story was a big success! =D I wrote a creepy story about a girl who becomes more peculiar as the story goes, and a boy who just can't leave her alone...
^-^ You can read it here (opens in a new window).
The story is called Four Rivers. The poster I made for it shows the mysterious feeling of the story very well (I think). I hope you'll read the story, I'll soon edit it, because I've gotten some useful critics when I read it in last lesson.

I'll be back~! ;D

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Food jokes from a drama I forgot

^^ I'm back~!

So, I was cleaning up my room... and threw a lot out... and then I came across some jokes I had jotted down after seeing a movie...
I have absolutely no clue about which movie it was (believe me I tried for hours to find it, but till this moment I haven't found it). The movie was about a young female that was going on a blind date with a man while she absolutely didn't feel like it. The man cracked some jokes and she was less than slightly interested. Later in the story she meets him again and things change. She was drunk or something and she started hitting on him and I don't know what exactly happened anymore... xP

I do know that the jokes he told her were funny enough then to write down! xD
Here they are:
~ What did the strawberry say to the blueberry? I love you berry berry much.
~ Why does a lost man in the desert still survives? Because of all the sand which is there.
~ Why did the lettuce blush? Because he saw the salad dressing.

^-^ Hehe, I think these jokes are pretty common and perhaps well-known already... LOL, but I did hear them first when I saw that movie.
Btw, if someone knows the title of this movie (because of my poor description, I doubt it), please don't hesitate and tell me in a comment! =]

Haha, it was fun, I guess, now I have to continue my homework... -____________-

Ciao~ ^-^ ♥

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Fun with old friends

Waaah~! =]
^^" Long time no blog post from me, eh?
Not much has happened though... xD
Well I did get in touch with my best friend from high school (from the first 4 years)...

I think I've got some explaining to do first, though. xP
I actually had 6 years of high school, divided into 2 parts, first 4 years, than a year of professional Recreation and Tourism education and then another 2 years of high school (higher level than the 4 years before) and now I'm in my 2nd year of professional Media, Information and Communication education (also a higher level than recreation and tourism)..

As I was saying, I got in touch with my high school best friend Liset from the first 4 years. Together with Eef, who I also know from those 4 years, we've been to "De Meester", a place where various local bands were playing. =]
Afterwards we went to a local pub and I drank my first full glass of beer xD (I don't like it, that's why I never drink it, but this time it was already ordered, so I had to, but I still don't like it! LOL) We were actually with a large group, because one of the bands were Lis and Eef's friends...
It was very nice, I had a lot of fun, I also ran into two guys (Emilio and Alex) I knew from the other 2 years at high school! xD
Afterwards I stayed over at Lisette's house and it was just like old times again. =) Now we're chatting on msn again, just like there hasn't even been a gap! x]
I'm really happy about that! ^-^
Haha, here's a picture of us two, when we were out, eating with the class. =)


Anyways, that's it for now~! =] ♥
I'll be back when I have time and something to blog about!
Adios~

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria

Fun conversation! =]

^-^ I'll just ignore the fact that it's Valentine's Day, since I haven't received/given anything anyway, so... x-x"

Yesterday, my dad celebrated his 55th birthday with family! ^-^
It was fun! Family from both sides came together (we had no karaoke!) and it was very nice to see my cousins again! =D (I have two male cousins and one female cousin).

Since there's quite an age difference (I'm 20 and my cousins are 11, 13 and almost 14) we settled for a board game but ended up drawing. It was fun, not so much because of the drawing, but because we always tell each other fun things and because we joke around a lot. ^-^

Anyway, when we had Goulash soup, we had a fun conversation:

Maurice (my cousin): What type of meat is in this soup?
Me: ^-^ Chicken, no I mean cow
Maurice: Oh~ Do you know where the soup is from, it doesn't sound Dutch...
Me: Ehmmm, I don't know, I though India...
My mum: No, it's from Hungary.
Maurice: Haha, I figured it wasn't from India... Cows... Holy... *hint, hint*
Everybody who heard and me: HAHA~! *LOL/ROFL/LM(F)AO*

Yup, had lots of fun~... ^ー^ㆀ

Now, let's hope tomorrow will bring fun again~! (^ー°)v
┓━ㆀ If not, I'm gonna cry!!! T____Tㆀ

~~~~~X~~~x~~~X~~~~~
*~Maria