2019: A year of changes (2)
Part 2: A change of cars
For 8 I've been driving my 2005 Peugeot Partner. Bought as a second hand car in 2011, it really has been a loyal and fun partner for many miles. But lately, the Peugeot started suffering from old age. Specifically some typical brand quirks, so time for me to go look at a replacement.
MX-linux on a Lenovo Ideapad S130
Quite a while ago, my wife bought an 11" Lenovo Ideapad S130, idea was to install Linux on this netbook. Removing Windows was no problem, but I knew that installing Linux would be a challenge with the Realtek RTL8821CE wifi card and de Intel N5000 processor. But after a lot of searching and trying out several Linux distro's I finally managed it.
2019: a year of changes (1)
Part 1: My job
2019 had to come with some changes, that was something I was hoping for by the end of last year. The first and biggest change should be my job, and after years of searching and writing letters that change had finally come.
Kitchen make over
My 2 weeks vacation are almost over. Tomorrow it's back to work. Not that I've been sitting on my butt for 2 weeks, really not.
We've been giving the kitchen a make-over to give it a fresh new look.
Walking: Graafjanstocht Westdorpe 2019
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- Written by Frank V
- Category: Zeelandic Flanders
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Sunday, September 22nd there will be a new edition of the Graafjanstocht walking tour in Westdorpe. Walking in and around the "Warmest village of the Netherlands" and through Canisvliet, a beautiful natural area.
How to import a GPX file into OsmAnd
By request of several visitors, an update on how to import a GPX route file into OsmAnd:
(Click on the pictures for a larger view, and although the screenshots are in Dutch it's still easy to follow)
User Rating: 4 / 5
From WordPress to Joomla
It was (and will be for a while) quite a hassle, but I've migrated my website from Wordpress to Joomla. And for now, I think everything is in working order. A couple of articles have been uploaded, the remaining posts will be put here in due time. I wasn't able to migrate comments from visitors, as the old site had the build-in comment system from WordPress. Here on the new site I'm giving the JComment system a try. Just to see if it suits me.
But why the change?
DIY E-Trike
The conversion kits to turn our Trident Trikes Stowaways into e-trikes are installed. The kits by Ebike Efos were delivered and complete, so last weekend I've started installing them. As this was the first time I've transferred a bike into an e-bike I was expecting that it would take over half a day to get it done, but it went pretty smoothly. Despite the rainy intermissions a week ago.
Going e-bike after all
Over a year ago, I've reposted an article about why I wasn't going to ride an e-bike quite yet, but....
I'm not getting any younger and I find the longer you wait, the harder it gets to go back to frequent bike rides again. So, as the month of may is also the month for holiday bonus, I've started searching for information and reviews on e-bikes and suppliers. And yes, I'm gonna do it!
Android change
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- Written by Frank V
- Category: Blog
- Hits: 75
At the end of 2010 I bought my first android device, a Samsung Galaxy S Wifi 5.0. A 5 inch device with no phone function. A mini tablet so to speak. To replace my old usb mp3 players, which were very limited as far as storage was concerned and didn't have internal speakers. You might remember these little players:
Monday morning on my way to work
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- Written by Frank V
- Category: Photo & Video
- Hits: 51
Two snapshot during my commute into work last monday morning.
It was a beautiful start of the day...
Fly my spirit...
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- Written by Frank V
- Category: Wannabe Poetry
- Hits: 97
Fly my spirit
free spirit fly
leave my body
……..when I die
find the fantasies
that lived in my mind
fulfil the desires
my heart left behind
Time vs Love
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- Written by Frank V
- Category: Wannabe Poetry
- Hits: 141
Just the other day
in the corner of my eye
I saw something passing
't was time flying by
Nicknames in Zeelandic Flanders
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- Written by Frank V
- Category: Zeelandic Flanders
- Hits: 57
The inhabitants of some towns and villages in Zeelandic Flanders have nicknames, depending on where they live.
Here is a short overview (far from complete I think and the translation of the nicknames is a fairly free interpretation to stay as close to the orignal meaning as possible)
I'm always open to additions, corrections, etc... You can use the contact form or leave a reply.
Light up flag-pole for my trike
Although it has been about 6 months since I've last rode my trike, the cycling bug starts biting again. It seems that this bug may slumber but will never die (fortunately). In the meantime, it's wintertime. So short days and many dark hours. Especially for an convicted early bird like me. That's why I've been looking into lighted flagpoles for my trike to get a bit more visibility and safety.
Santana Black Magic Woman live
It's been years since I've last bought a vinyl record. But recently I came across a live Santana album at the Aldi. A concert from 1978. And as I've recently bought a record player again I thought "Let's get this one". To me, playing these vinyl records has it's own charm: wiping the dust of the record, putting the needle into the groove, relax and enjoy! 
Rainbow
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- Written by Frank V
- Category: Wannabe Poetry
- Hits: 104
From life's lessons
there's one thing I know
looked upon with loving light
even from a teardrop
a rainbow can grow
Clear enough! Right?
For the last couple of weeks at work, I've been busy moving the warehouse from one building to another. It's proven to be quite the job, also because of less than perfect communication and co-operation from those "on the higher levels". But me being me, I'm going for it with. Putting some muscle into it with some music and a big wink to reality. Just going for it...
New garden shed
While it's pouring with rain here at the moment, I'm happy that we finished the build of a new garden shed in time. The shed that came with the house when we moved in here 13 years ago had seen better days, so we demolished it last year. Only the floor remained.
Back to vinyl
Last week I bought myself a new toy for some "old-fashioned" entertainment: A record player! So time to blow the dust off of the old vinyl. A big box with long-play records and a little case filled to the brim with 45 rpm singles. It's gonna be a trip down memory lane while listening to and digitizing my musical preferences from my youth.
Homemade walking sticks
Recently, we've cut down one of the trees in our garden that grew way to big. Which left us with a huge pile of cuttings. One option is to bring it to the recycle centre and use the bigger logs for the wood burning stove, but I wanted to do something different. A bit inspired by the BBC programme Money For Nothing.
The strange thing about birthdays
On the last day of another year of living, some strange thoughts bubble up in my mind. One thing I've noticed over the years is that the younger you are the more you look forward to your birthday. And when you get older, that enthusiasm decreases very fast. Mental health on the other hand seems to go along a reverse line.