November 8th, 2012

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Wednesday November 7. The Morning After.

Thursday, November 8th, 2012

I have crossed the Rubicon. In the coming week I will hold the proto-type of “De Mastmakersdochters” in my very hands. Keep an eye on this blog for further news on the distribution. The English version is getting all my attention now.

The weather has been miserable, cold and wet and dark but perfect conditions to work in my warm cabin. Guus Bierman and his wife Jannie came yesterday to tear me away for a really nice lunch at Loetje on the Amstel River in Ouderkerk. Guus is a man of the cloth, ‘Contender’ sailcloth that is. It was a nostalgic visit for him here at the club house where he was a member and also learned to sail, fifty years ago. I was horrified to see, across the river, from “Loetje” that the Christian Reformed Church in Ouderkerk is being demolished. “Another One Bites The Dust…”. I have mentioned this in an earlier blog the book that Geert Mak wrote: “Toen God verdween uit Jorwerd” (“When God left Jorwerd”). This story plays in a fictional Frisian village and came out in 1996. Back in 1989 I happened to be in this same church in Ouderkerk for the memorial service of my 42 year old cousin, Dolf. God was still in Ouderkerk then. And guess who gave the eulogy for his long time friend? Geert Mak…

My home state, Washington, in yesterday’s elections, approved the public sale of Marijuana. So, a couple of my friends have already cancelled their plans to come to Amsterdam for a smoke. My first wife lives in California and is still driving the V.W. bus we brought with us from Europe in 1970. She is painting the Peace emblem back on the bus and is offering rides to Washington State. If my book does not sell I may look into becoming a weed-farmer.

George Snijder’s wife took the below picture, last Friday. George and his wife live on an old Tjalk and George is the expert on tracing the origins of Dutch classic boats. He helped find this information for the 110 year old “Vrouw Maria” the home of a Southern California couple in the Los Angeles harbor.

with George Snijder at the Classic Boat Fair in Enkhuizen