Hey don’t diss on Gollum. He smart enough to survive alone in the wilderness for decades and wander all the way to Mordor. Also, he still had a shred of decency left. He was far more handsome and athletic than the orange blob we see on tv every day.

A note on this from abroad: I from the Netherlands, originally. Today at 10 o’clock a temperature of 12.5 Celcius was measured at the location of the national weather service KNMI. This is the all time record for the highest temperature measured on New Year’s Eve. The unbroken record of measurements goes back to 1705,…

Shh don’t get in the way of some good underbelly hate with your facts and all. Respect the post truth society! ;)

you seem precious.

I looked at the website of my Belgian bank, and they still issue cheques. But use seems extremely limited, mostly large transactions. The page is full of warnings about fraud, and warns the user for high penalties should these be used for tax fraud. Also never accept a foreign cheque! Which I suspect mostly sums up…

Last time I moved around lots of euros (I bought a house in Belgium) the whole procedure was handled by a notary. Cards always have a limit on them for protection, and for a transaction involving a large amount of money that does not involve real estate a person goes to the bank, and puts their card in the machine and…

I’m still on the fence about the contactless payment thing. I feel it is just not as safe, and there have indeed been reports of fraud. Time will tell.

That’s odd, I’ve never had a chip break in one of these cards, and I’ve used the ones I have now for at least 5 years. The actual card wears away and starts delaminating, but with a bit of rubbing the chip works fine.

they make a whole range of shoes. Not my thing, but I can see the appeal- it is one of those iconic brands. I see these on sale a lot, but I rarely see them worn because this is the kind of shoe you wear at home. I suspect they are quite popular as such!

Wait Good Omens will be filmed and these actors will be in it? How did I miss this? Good casting, though I would have liked it if one of them had been female- as they are supposed to be sexless beings. But I can’t argue with Tennant. This will be good!

I have some clues. First of all, electricity is not fire, but the motion of an electrical charge. Heat is generated when this motion meets resistance, and this can lead to fire. Like, when an electrical heater which uses lots of amps is connected to an unsuitable extension cord.

Ow, horrible...These poor people. I wonder if the building met fire safety regulations...

The local zoo has two baby black and rufous elephant shrews. Very odd critters, very adorable critters too! Look like rats on stilts with long noses; are actually related to the elephant!

Yes. Just ordered a new battery for my 3 year old LG G4. A perfectly good reliable and fast phone I bought for around 200 euros. I like it very much...Takes very good pictures, and actually the old battery was not that bad. But, it’s easy to pop in a new one so why not.

Well, it needs to be said that while the Netherlands are known for being progressive, we have our very own bible belt. Maybe the Americans should consider moving their embassy from The Hague to Staphorst. They should fit in fine there, as long as they don’t spray their lawn on Sundays.

I don’t think even the Wilders clique will be with this guy because he is so obviously a lying embarassment...

No. Because there are no politicians being set on fire, and there are no no-go zones. But, he is right in one way because new year’s eve is coming up, and by good old fashioned native Dutch tradition that means blowing up mailboxes and your fingers off with fireworks, and setting cars alight. Ah, Dutch culture!

Starred for Gump.

starred for Python.

I would like to nominate Susan Bro, the mother of Charlotteville victim