snail mail

30yrs - BE/UK

[notes-de-terrain]

My heatwave bag

Belgium is boiling.

After days of carrying WAY too much to the office and suffering, I decided to slim down my bag and belongings. Just to make the travel to and fro a bit more bearable. (I also LOVE What's in my bag video's lol)

Money/card pouch and keys

Obviously ...

Agenda/To Do notebook

Must for work. I worked from home yesterday, otherwise I would've left the To Do notebook at the office

A fan (souvenir from my boyfriend)

<3

THE pouch

In which I carry everything important

- A mist for the face. Fanning afterwards is soooo pleasant.

- deodorant

- foldable comb with mirror

- sunscreen

- multivitamin energy tablets

- lipbalm

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That's it! Everything important luckily fits in this small bag. I also carry a water bottle with me but I just hold it or pop it in my pocket. Its not heavy.

...

I hope things will change. I know it's going to get cooler soon, but Belgium its urban planning and infrastructures are NOT made for heatwaves like these. A lot of people are having a very rough time right now and they can't be expected to just suck it up now or in the future, with the news these will become more frequent (looking at you, Theo).

It's 20° hotter in urban areas (aka all of Flanders)

[notes-de-terrain]

Donkey’s (y)ears

donkey's years  (plural only) -  A long time, years and years. (UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, idiomatic)

Donkey's ears (ezelsoren) - folded corners of pages in books (in dutch)

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My boyfriend and I visited the Oldmasters Museum in Brussels last weekend, and as usual it took us a few hours. We like to take our time.

But it brought up an interesting topic that eventually confused the both of us. We commented on it while observing The Census at Bethlehem by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, as we had very different (initial) ideas of the symbolism behind donkeys in art.

The Census at Bethlehem - Pieter Bruegel the Elder - 1566

In this piece I was reminded of the donkey being a reliable character. But I'm a big admirer of Goya's later work, and was also thinking of The Bewitched Man where donkeys make the backdrop of this devilish painting. Should I even dive into his etchings...

The Bewitched Man - Francisco Goya - c.1798

Donkeys were used by Goya to showcase idiocy. Having lived during the Spanish Enlightment, it was one of his many ways to critique human ignorance. It was satire.

Meanwhile, in religious works, a donkey represents humility. They will bear the burdens which meant they were loyal and trustworthy. In Pieter Bruegel the Elder his painting (that we were commenting on) the Virgin Mary and Joseph walk into Bethlehem on a donkey. You can spot them at the bottom of the canvas. He's carrying a pregnant Mary.

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Anyway, it was funny that my boyfriend was going with the 'donkeys are good' rethoric and I was holding onto 'donkeys are bad'. Maybe it's time for me to read Don Quichot...

[notes-de-terrain]

Nature Morte

I have a few locations on my bucket list, and one that's (a TGV train ride) close and quite high is Cézanne's studio in Aix-en-Provence: Atelier des Lauves.

A beautiful soft yellow building, filled with art equipment, in the south of France. Sounds like a dream...

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I find his still life work very inspirational, even when the perspective makes no sense. Couldn't he do it, or did he not care? He mentioned that he paints what he perceives. The accuracy of perspective is just a mere afterthough if just not thought about at all. I've read an article stating that the painted objects moved with him, therefore the art remains in motion even when flat. Your eyes are being thrown around the canvas upon looking at it. Guess that challenged the concept of still life in a way.

Paul Cézanne - Nature morte pot à lait et fruits sur une table - ca.1890

But as someone who studied at an art academy where perspective had to be correct at all times, seeing his je m'en fous attitude for the first time was indeed unconventional in the best way.

Something I was just thinking about. Enjoy.

Veel liefs <3

[notes-de-terrain]

Drowning the rush with music

I work in a field that's qenerally quite hectic and all over the place, but once a year we reach a "summit" after months of intense preparations. We stay in this high energy for days until the point of losing breath.

That summit week just passed. Everything went well and the hard work did pay off... but I need a break.

Today was my first day off after the intense mountain climb. I descended back into the comfort of my bed and used the free time to gather some information about my music taste. What else is there to do?

I have a spotify account! But I also saved so many songs over the years, I quite frankly polluted it. I'm overwhelmed and am lost in the various playlists and likes. So this questionnaire I found pointed me in a few directions.

It was made by an account called benedictervention (Benedict Cumberbatch reference?) but it has been deactivated. You can still find the list on Pinterest.

Some of the questions:

A song you like with a colour in the title.

O Green World - Gorillaz

A song that has to be played loud.

Illuminate - Orbital

A song to drive to.

Me Gustas Tu - Manu Chao

A song that is a cover by another artist.

A Minha Menina - Onda Vaga, Francisco, el Hombre (the original song is by Os Mutantes)

A song from the year you were born.

Fu-Gee-La - Fugees, Ms Lauryn Hill, Wyclef Jean, Pras

A song that makes you think about life.

Empire Ants - Gorillaz, Little Dragon

A favourite song with a person's name in the title.

Kelly Watch the Stars - Air

A song that moves you forward.

Linda Mañana - Ondatrópica

A song by an artist no longer living.

Lambada - Kaoma

A song that makes you (want to) fall in love.

So Easy (To Fall In Love) - Olivia Dean

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This week, thanks to reading a theatre review, I discovered the world-famous The Lady and the Unicorn Tapestries (French: La dame à la licorne).

They represent the senses. L'Ouie be the one of Hearing (translation), with the lady playing an organ atop a table.

Hearing is often visualised with music. The Allegory of Hearing plays a Lute or an Harpsichord. Surely to romanticise the sense, but it intertwined. I'm thankful it did.

Veel liefs <3

[lemaldusiecle]

Repose en paix, dear Marjane Satrapi (1969-2026).

You were my goal during my teenage years. Photographs by Rahi Rezvani 🖤

[notes-de-terrain]

My first letter

I tried starting earlier, but I became a little self-conscious... Not unusual for me to feel like this. I pushed it away, for days, for months... but my hands are itching again.

About a year and half ago, I fell in love with journaling and so far I have gone through one notebook (250 pages) and a half. But it's more commonplacing than writing solely diary entries which at some point made me realize, 'I can do some of this online'. Create a digitale space with digital "letters".

I love hearing other people talk about their interests and discoveries. I love reading about it as well. In times like these, going through personal memos by a human is food for thought. It makes me feel grounded and connected. That's why I'm archiving so much more of my life. For now and for later.

I recently found out about the term snail mail (very cute) and as someone who is going through a phase of doing stuff more slow on purpose (to make a statement, I guess?) this discovery was all the better.

I'll write letters, add things I've liked or found and take my time doing it. So simple but hopefully quite valuable.

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Some things I've discovered/enjoyed this week:

Phenakistoscopes: It randomly passed me by on Pinterest. I spend so much time going through them, I was hypnotized by the end. It became even better when I discovered that it was first invented in Brussels ^^ and Berlin (around the same time, what a coincidence).

Phenakistoscope Disk - France - c.1835

Jorge Ben Jor - Força Bruta: I live far away from Brazil and I just have one Real bank note safely tucked away in a folder (it was given to me by an ex-colleague from Brazil), but what's bringing me closer is Samba music. My all time favourite music genre. I get in such high spirits while listening because everything melts together so beautifully.

Força Bruta is a wonderful album.

Also, the note I was given. I gave her 2 pounds in return. It's meant to bring good luck. This note is so pretty.

Veel liefs <3