Nimavenl - Nicole's Random Ramblings

“ You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is like an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty. ” ― Mahatma Gandhi

Growing up in the age of gaming, I was part of the generation that stayed inside to play their Atari, Game Boy, Nintendo or PlayStation. Dolls, wooden train sets, Barbies, G-I-Joes and ball games were abandoned for action-packed adventure games to be enjoyed from the comfort of one's own bed or couch. No more hiking through the snow to reach a friend or playing ball in the pouring rain - instead we sat down, often with a drink and some crisps, and battled monsters of each and every variety. I remember being extremely proud when I rescued Princess Peach in Super Mario 64 by defeating Bowser not once, not twice, but three times. This achievement is still the only one I can boast about, as over the years I have tried many games, but finished only this one. Photo credit:  Lara Croft Wiki One game I still want to get back to one day is Tomb Raider. I really enjoyed playing the original game when it first came out, even though it really really scared me. Instead ...

Source: WheelTronix While I am by no means a car enthusiast or even a car person , I do love Minis and other small cars. Not the newer models so much, but the older ones I will simply drool over. I used to live in the same street as a guy who did up old Minis. Whether for sport, for fun or for a living I have no idea  -- I never asked. I walked past his Mini standing in the street every day and checked out the developments. New paint job, headlights, front seats, doors - I loved seeing the changes and the new things he'd done that day or that week. After a while the current project would be finished. Everyone admired the shiny, beautiful car and a few weeks later a new project-car would appear. Dented, dusty, rusty and worn - it looked like heaven to my 11 year-old eyes. To this day, every time I walk past a Mini Cooper, a Morris Minor, VW Bug or a Renault 4CV, I stop and stare... And dream of one day owning one, just like I did when I was eleven years old and saw how hap...

Sometimes, doing absolutely nothing is simply bliss. Relaxing at home, watching The Big Bang Theory on TV, reading a book, having a hot bath... Sometimes, an evening of doing absolutely nothing really is the best thing in the world. Forget about war, famine, disease, work, life, stress or anything else outside my happy bubble, and just relax. Bliss :)

I took this photo about two weeks ago. I walk along this footpath daily on my way to work.  This time I happened to be walking here on a day I wasn't working. As I wasn't talking or rushing or trying to get somewhere, I had my phone out and was taking photos of random things along the way. Blurry trees and traffic lights, blurry buildings in the semi-dark and well, blurry shots of the pavement as well! This photo - Sure, it's weird and blurry and strange, however I love it.  I don't know exactly why, however this image feels a bit like it's the opening frame for a horror movie. Guess that's why I like it so much - it feels like it's the beginning of something. Perhaps simply the beginning of something new and different, the beginning of a journey into the future. Or, in true horror movie style, the beginning to being eaten by a monster that jumps out of the trees just ahead. Who knows...  Just imagine what would happen, what you ...

@Nimavenl Took this photo last weekend while walking around my home town. (C) Nimavenl 2012

Can´t help but think that somehow this is very, very true! Found it here , although by the looks of it they got it somewhere else as well...

Wandering around the mall last week, I decided I needed to work on my creativity - and possibly get me a new hobby. A week later, I'm wondering why that crazy thought entered my mind. I read, I write, I do crosswords, I enjoy photography - surely those are good hobbies to have?! Source: Wikipedia My muse disagreed however, and when I saw a 1000-piece puzzle of Vincent van Gogh's Starry Night , I simply had to buy it. I honestly can't remember the last time I completed a puzzle that didn't involve words, so to say that completing this puzzle is a challenge is definitely an understatement! It's a challenge I'm enjoying, however! As of today, the outside pieces are all in place, as are the bottom left and the top right pieces. As for the rest... I have about five piles of purple puzzle pieces ranging from pinkish to almost black, a pile each with brownish and blackish pieces, another huge pile of greenish pieces, a bunch of stars ready to be fit...

Surfing around on Goodreads today, I came across a poem by Philip Larkin entitled "This be the verse". I smiled, realising I knew it as it is my mother´s favourite poem. Not sure I ever knew who penned it, or that it had such an innocent-sounding name, however! Reposted here for my mother who probably doesn't even know this blog exists, because I love you and I wish I could give you a hug and wish you a happy new year face to face. They fuck you up, your mum and dad. They may not mean to, but they do. They fill you with the faults they had And add some extra, just for you. But they were fucked up in their turn By fools in old-style hats and coats, Who half the time were soppy-stern And half at one another's throats. Man hands on misery to man. It deepens like a coastal shelf. Get out as early as you can, And don't have any kids yourself. Author ~ Philip Larkin Philip Larkin Official Website

So sue me, I'm in the mood for Doctor Who / Torchwood related trivia, photos, spoilers, screencaps and set shots... My Good Friend Google provided me with lots of interesting stuff today !!! I'm not much for baking myself these days, however that's mostly because my baking tends to be random, strange and definitely not something I need to expose others too... Ever tried making a peanutbutter-and-honey cake? No? Well, I have. Start with your basic chocolate cake recipe, change it so you don't recognise the original any more, pop it in the oven and enjoy... Or try a couscous, honey and pine nut stuffing inside Moroccan bread... Actually, should try that again some time, I really enjoyed that particular recipe. Anyway, back on topic, here are some cool links to awesome Doctor Who cakes and cake-baking websites: Check out this recipe for a Tardis cake at Do It Myself... Awesome pics! Cool Doctor Who cakes at Cake Wrecks - Love the Tom Baker tribute! Also very...

Source : The Pandorica Opens , Tardis Data Core I love the work of Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh. I also love, love, love Doctor Who. Combine the two, and you have what is one my most favourite paintings in the world right now... A van Gogh style rendering of the Tardis exploding. How cool is that ??? !!! ??? !!! As I've got tomorrow off, I figured I deserved some quality time with my good friend Google. Had a proper geek-happy moment on visiting the pages below showing van Gogh versions of superhero / sci-fi / modern culture images. Check out: Van Gogh, les parodies et les geeks at La Boite Verte Gotham Starry Night And Other Van Gogh Parodies at Popped Culture

With the 2011 Rugby World Cup final approaching, every self-respecting Kiwi is finding excuses to wear black... Lots of black. While I'm not usually a girly-girl who cares too much about appearances, even my nails got a make-over and now look amazing... Tried to get a close-up shot of them using my phone, and to have it look vaguely artsy at the same time. Not sure how well that worked out though ;-) Now go back to your lives, remember to dress up in black on Sunday (the winners-to-be are after all called the All Blacks!!!!), and enjoy the big game! And just in case you can't get enough of fancy nails and nail art, check out this link to  Emily's Nail Files - totally awesome blog !!!!!

It's been a long time since I went on a holiday. Well, that's one way of looking at it... One could also say that I'm still on holiday, a holiday that's lasted for almost two years now. Life here in The Netherlands has been good. I really enjoy my job, have some pretty awesome friends, and feel at peace with myself. It's not a glamorous life or a very exciting one just right now, however all things can change! At the moment, my life is simple. Easy. Uncomplicated. Boring even, quite a lot of the time. I will most definitely go stir-crazy if I have to live this life for another two years, however for these past two years, it's been what I needed. Living a simple and easy life has allowed me to get settled in, it's allowed me to save up, it's allowed me to get a job and make friends and figure out what I want without a whole lot of stress. And now I'm going on holiday. I'm going back to New Zealand. I'm excited and looking forward...

Being grateful. Sometimes it sounds very easy, at other times it sounds quite hard. When life seems to be going well, being grateful feels easy. We love our job, enjoy spending time with friends, attend interesting courses, we're fit and healthy - whatever makes us feel happy, satisfied and content, those are all things to feel grateful for. When life throws you curve balls and making ends meet or staying sane feels impossible, being grateful can seem pointless or futile. Life sucks - why should I be grateful for that? Yet even in the face of disappointment, curve balls, stress, grief, loss or hardship, we are alive and able to think about whatever may be happening in our lives. We are able to examine our lives, to look at what is happening and to find ways to get through whatever it is we're going through. One of the many perks of the way our minds work! Focusing only (or mostly) on negative thoughts, feelings and emotions like Life sucks / I'm a failure / Nobody love...