Tag Archives: Davis

Special – Another Davis – Lion Hearts X

Contents

Ten years Another Davis
Magical realism in reality
The battle
Multiverse
The Davis house
The Magical-Realistic Earth
Lion Hearts previous parts


DOWNLOAD LEEUWENHARTEN DUTCH Part I-X pdf
DOWNLOAD LION HEARTS ENGLISH Part I-X pdf

Ten years Another Davis

Nine previous Lion Hearts blogs have been published. I haven’t followed a timeline in years, cross my heart and hope to die, but I realized a few months ago that Rob and I have a ten-year Another Davis anniversary on May 30, 2024, and this should not go unmentioned. After all, on May 30, 2014, he was found physically deceased behind his computer. As a result, he had left Groningen and, based on my findings, moved in with me in Another Davis. For convenience, I will omit the quotation marks around Another Davis in this blog. The perfection of the cosmos remains awe-inspiring, as Lion Hearts Part X, ten, now coincides with this ten-year milestone from 2014-2024.

May 30, 2014. And still May 29, 2014, in Davis, California. I felt it, even without knowing. An icy hand had gripped my heart. And then the knowing came too, when Jan Willem Nienhuys emailed me. J. Hennekam said that, in her view, Rob had not died on May 30 but on the evening of May 29, 2014, and that was Ascension Day. Despair set in, the search for Rob on the other side. Finding him too. The marriage with my ex, fraught from the start on January 6, 2005, was officially ended by the court on April 8, 2018, but I had been alone since the first half of 2017 when my ex suddenly left the house and immediately entered multiple relationships. I suspect that he mentally detached from me definitively on the day of Rob’s death. My ex is not clueless and likely sensed that it was over. It was certainly not clear to me in 2014. But Rob came and stayed. Looking back at who I was in May 2014, I can say that Rob might have been right when he mused aloud to me on June 12, 2012, “I certainly don’t think we are destined for each other or anything like that. I don’t think we have much in common and if we were close to each other, we might end up arguing within a day.” I was indeed far too immature (a late bloomer). Only after Rob’s death did we truly develop a good understanding. I see our failure before May 2014 primarily as my ‘fault’. For instance, I now feel much more relaxed about whether or not one ‘must’ be 100% vegan. I also understand that skeptics do not accept what they consider excuses from people who claim to have out-of-body or near-death experiences, about why they failed to provide evidence (such as reading normally invisible sequences of numbers placed high above the operating table, specifically set up to prove that consciousness can exist separately from the physical body). After all these years, the need to be right at all costs no longer interests me. What matters to me now is my love for Rob and our shared skeptical and relational interests, because yes, they were and are abundant. Only when he entered his new state of being did Rob acknowledge the depth of our connection and decided not to leave me alone. And should all this turn out to be different (which would give me infinite sorrow, which fortunately is not possible since existence would then be finite), the love I now feel from Rob remains the same. After his passing, Rob enveloped me in love and support, swathed me with endless patience and warmth, steering me away from a marriage that had completely derailed me. I finally began to see that a good relationship is supportive and can only succeed if both partners hold and propel each other with the greatest imaginable love.

Magical realism in reality

Another Davis began very early in the Lion Hearts blogs. Rob and I organically ended up there after his passing, but it was Rob himself who, from the very beginning of our contact, essentially introduced it. This began with his story and explanation of magical realism on February 25, 2006—the world in which all events almost magically align, everything has meaning and purpose, wondrous yet still real things happen, and nothing is coincidental. (See Lion Hearts III and Lion Hearts IV)

Rob Nanninga, February 25, 2006: “I can still remember one time in a dream where I saw the solution to a puzzle in an adventure game. That was quite handy because then I could finally continue with the game (the solutions were not available on the internet back then). I have also had a precognitive dream, which many might consider convincing evidence of precognition. I became somewhat superstitious for a while after that, but that gradually faded away. After that, I only entered into a sort of paranormal trance once. That was during a short vacation in Bruges where I attended a multi-day fairytale congress with two others. That week resembled a magical realist novel. A lot of surprising things happened and miraculous coincidences occurred that were all interconnected, as if nothing happened by chance. Just like in a good novel, I could detect foreshadowing, symbols, repetitions, reflections, parallels, leitmotifs, and double meanings everywhere. Although this was naturally due in large part to my own creativity, the events certainly lent themselves much better to such an analysis than usual, so much so that it also caught the attention of my travel companions. After I pointed out the common thread to them, they could follow it well.
It was during this visit to Bruges (a real fairytale city, but somewhat bourgeois) that I decided to write a critical book about parapsychology. I told this to an American first. Right after that, I went to the book fair in Frankfurt to buy some recent professional literature from the US, which at the time took months to arrive if you ordered it from a bookstore. Among other things, I bought the book “The Psychology of the Psychic.” It had a chapter on coincidences that appealed to me greatly. After that, I didn’t experience many meaningful coincidences anymore. Or did I? On the day I had my manuscript duplicated at the copy shop to send it to publishers, unexpectedly, the American showed up at my doorstep, whom I hadn’t spoken to since Bruges.”

Download Psychology of the Psychic (chapter)

Rob was/is an extremely well-read person, and you could tell, in my opinion, from all his emails. Anyone who, like me, reads the relevant chapter will discover that the authors indeed provide very solid counterarguments regarding things considered ‘too coincidental to be chance.’ The explanation often lies in the fact that people only want to see the success stories and not all those other cases where things just went about their ordinary course without divine peculiarities. It remains Rob’s strength that he keeps things open, even in this email to me, as he ends with yet another very nice case of ‘improbably coincidental.’ Although I have few of these kinds of emails from him in which he discusses his own ‘paranormal’ experiences and things like magical realism, they provide a pleasant segue for me to establish a simple definition of magical realism in reality. I choose to fill this in, trusting that Rob and I are an entangled pair and are on the same page, with the term ‘synchronicities.’
In this blog, I want to introduce the ‘new’ value of magical realism for real life, not just as value in magical realist novels.
Magical realism as an existing value in reality is based on ‘very strong coincidence’ and synchronicities. Very strong coincidence refers to events that seem to coincide or happen in a remarkable way without a clear cause or connection. These could be situations where different events are interwoven in a surprising manner, or where something unexpected occurs at a moment that is particularly relevant or significant. It can also refer to events that seem extremely unlikely but still happen. Synchronicities are events that occur simultaneously in a meaningful way, without a clear causal connection, but are perceived by the individual as related or meaningful. With what I consider a good example of synchronicity, I begin this blog: At the moment of Rob’s passing, I officially knew nothing, but in exactly the same timeframe that Rob passed away, I was suddenly overwhelmed by a profoundly negative mood where everything seemed completely black and meaningless. “Very strong coincidence” and “synchronicities” have a strong overlap, with the difference being that synchronicities involve strong coincidences happening at the same or nearly the same moment in time.

A few examples of situations that can be considered “very strong coincidence”: I strike up a conversation with a complete stranger during one of my bike rides, and we discover that we were born on the same day, in the same year, and even in the same place.
Examples of synchronicities: You’re grappling with a particular problem, walk past the bookshelves in the library, and a book falls out that contains exactly the answers you need. Another example: You’re considering making an important decision and suddenly see a car with a license plate indicating something like “YES” or “GO AHEAD.” Rob Nanninga actually had a nice example for this in his book “Parariteiten,” but managed to ‘explain it away,’ and it speaks to his credit that he made a reservation expressed in the sentence: “In this case, it could be that…”


Download Parariteiten

These examples of magical realism illustrate how meaningful coincidences can occur, where events are mysteriously and seemingly unrelatedly connected. My idea about this ‘new’ scientific value (yes, I dare), is that it is increasingly happening, or rather, people are becoming aware of it, when they are alert and look up more for answers and beyond a linear concept of time. This brings the idea that we may live in a matrix into play as well.

I’ve now let AI assist me for a moment, and I must say: AI is very helpful in this case.

My question to AI was:

How are the idea of living in a matrix (simulation, life as a kind of game, hologram idea, etc.) and the phenomenon of synchronicities intricately intertwined, if they are at all?

AI was not shy in their response:

“The idea of living in a matrix (simulation, life as a kind of game, hologram, etc.) and the phenomenon of synchronicities can be intricately intertwined in the following ways:

  1. Control and Programming:
    • In a simulation or matrix theory, it’s assumed that reality is controlled and programmed by a higher intelligence or advanced technology. Synchronicities, also known as meaningful coincidences, can be seen in this context as programmed events deliberately embedded in the simulation script by this higher intelligence to facilitate specific experiences or insights.
  2. Meaningful Patterns:
    • In a simulated reality, the experiences and events of individuals could potentially be consciously designed to form certain patterns and meanings. Synchronicities can be interpreted as indicators of these patterns, reinforcing the illusion of deeper meaning and connectedness in life.
  3. Consciousness and Perception:
    • The hologram or simulation concept suggests that what we experience as physical reality is a projection perceived by our consciousness. Synchronicities can then be seen as moments when consciousness ‘notices’ certain connections or symbols within the simulation, making it seem as if these events are meaningfully linked.
  4. Information Exchange:
    • Within a matrix or simulation, information can be exchanged in ways that may not be possible in a ‘real’ physical world. Synchronicities could then be examples of unexpected information exchanges or ‘glitches’ in the simulation that stimulate awareness and growth.
  5. The Role of the Observer:
    • In both simulation hypotheses and synchronicities, the observer plays a crucial role. The idea that our perception influences reality aligns with quantum physics and the observer effects often associated with synchronicities. This may suggest that the matrix is influenced by what its inhabitants believe and perceive.
  6. Existential Questions:
    • Both concepts raise existential questions about the nature of reality and our existence within it. They suggest that there is more than what we perceive with our senses and that our experiences are part of a larger, perhaps intentional design. Synchronicities can be seen as clues that encourage us to look beyond surface reality.

This intertwining provides a framework for understanding synchronicities within the context of a simulated or holographic reality, where such experiences can be meaningful as ‘bugs’ or ‘features’ of the matrix that give us a glimpse of the underlying structure of our reality.” (As per AI)

AI suggests here, simplified in my own words, that our world might be the creation of a very high intelligence and that synchronicities are built-in game elements meant to help us delve deeper into our reality. And I asked another question to AI:

Do you think there could be a meaningful connection between the existence of synchronicities and the possible existence of a Multiverse?

Here too, AI was not shy to respond: “There could be a meaningful link between the existence of synchronicities and the possible existence of a Multiverse. Synchronicities are often seen as meaningful coincidences that defy logical explanations, suggesting that there is a deeper connection between events, beyond our usual understanding of cause and effect. The concept of a Multiverse, where multiple, perhaps infinite, parallel universes exist, could provide a framework for understanding how such seemingly unlikely events could occur. If these universes occasionally intersect or influence each other, that could explain why synchronicities occur. However, this is speculative and remains a fascinating subject for further exploration in both science and philosophy.”

I want to summarize this for my readers who might be leaning back in their chairs, a little startled, with: “There is so much more.” 😊 But again, in my own words: In moments of cosmic rift, the different versions of the multiverse intersect, leading to very strange and stubborn coincidences, synchronicities. An example: that book falling off the shelf, and it happens to be the perfect book for your problem, is caused by the tear in the Cosmos from the other you who just pulled that book out of the shelf and dropped it. With this blog, I hope to stimulate serious exploration of these ideas.

Rob became inadvertently more concrete, clearly leaning towards the multiverse idea, when I introduced him to the movie “Another Earth” in 2011, which he then watched himself, and from November 8, 2011, jokingly began signing some of his emails with “Bor” instead of “Rob.” (See Lion Hearts V).

The battle

For the writing of this blog, I naturally had to revisit all my previous Lionhearts blogs. There I stumbled upon my own intimate revelations, both about my marriage to my ex and much more about the intimacies between Another Davis Rob, the lions, and myself. I hadn’t forgotten these, but apparently, I had parked them in a far corner of my mind. I must say: this now brings me, in 2024, to a new sense of embarrassment. I’m not going to retrospectively withdraw some of the very explicit confessions; what’s the point with the Internet Archive, and some people have already read them anyway? Perhaps I’ve become more Americanized, more prudish, if you will (not in actions, but in the thought that you shouldn’t lay everything on the table). Also, now being 56 years old, I might be a bit calmer and more cautious. Well, what’s done is done? Or perhaps not, wink wink, in the multiverse worlds and versions? Every disadvantage has its advantage: with the richness of details, it serves as a living and breathing brain on which I can rely solidly as my years begin to count. Perhaps there are also people who appreciate that I was so explicit.
Desperately, I wondered how I could ever continue on Earth without the physical Rob. The answer was: “I can’t.” The answer still is: “I can’t.” Rob was already during my marriage, when he was still physically on Earth, my only beacon of hope. I hadn’t even realized that all those years since 2005, when I virtually met Rob, but this became painfully clear on Ascension Day 2014. Life tries to coax me time and time again, my body cells want to survive, my body whispers escape routes and ideas to me so it can survive itself. The dramatic event with the two Henryk Vogels is one of them (see here, here, and here). The immense sorrow over Rob is still there and is greater than all the tricks human nature wants to play on me. Our love is greater. But life kept clinging to me, and still does.
The past ten years have been inhumanly heavy, especially in terms of loneliness, and no, I’m not exaggerating here. Due to the disruptive effect of my marriage with my ex, I have become unaccustomed to engaging socially and physically, and progress in this area is only happening in micro steps. Sometimes it seems like I don’t even want it anymore. I also struggle quite a bit with my body, especially at night. Although I wrote earlier this year that I had “stopped taking paracetamol,” I must now retract that statement. Yes, I was so proudly abstinent for five months because of nighttime stomach pain, but it turned out that quitting didn’t bring relief. On the contrary, the discomfort in and around my stomach area seemed to worsen. Possibly, the damage or hypersensitivity is simply irreversible. And the annoying pulsating of the vein in my left temple usually stops when I take paracetamol. Overall, it seems that especially my head greatly appreciates the substance.
The ten years between Rob and me were a constant eruption of love, that was the other side. Rob, the skeptic, continued the adventure with me from Another Davis, as best as he could. Certainly, he too has fought a battle. The effort on both sides is immense. I dare to say all this in the blessing that comes with the idea of the quantum entangled couple. After all: we don’t even have to ‘try’ to reach each other, we are already together without visible or invisible lines. Breaking our quantum entanglement would, I think, only be possible if the shared core of love were no longer there. Iopt out on that one, and I hope Rob does too. This was and is a relationship that has gone through all the ebbs and flows over the past ten years.

And time and time again, when I was at my wit’s end, the flame beneath my earthly despair and loneliness began to flicker, encouragements came, and still come: “Hang in there!” Let me give a few examples. I’m completely in love with the new inner crew Rob Nanninga lion “Surprise” with his beautiful soft mane, his attentive and lightly ironic, heavenly eyes. I’m head over heels for all the inner crew Rob lions, and the infatuation strikes again and again. And last March, my mind made a beautiful connection: the lion had literally arrived like a ball, and another word for ball is “Orb.” That word is itself a skeptical wink because “orbs” in photos are often seen by paranormal believers as spirits or energies. Suddenly, the word Rob rolled over to Orb, and then I immediately had a new name tag made for Rob Surprise Lion. My mind then continues to play with the name of the new Rob lion: Surprise Orb, Supreme Orb, Sublime Orb, Superb Orb, Super Orb, Stunning Orb…

Another morale booster this year was when I Googled the name “Roelof Hendrik Nanninga” once again. And Google said, “Pop!” A new discovery once again highlighted the healthy, skeptical, resistance-offering power of the Nanninga force. Not Rob, but likely a relative of his with the exact same name and location in Groningen, popped up. A Dutch resistance hero who had hidden weapons for the Germans, was subsequently arrested and imprisoned by those same Germans, but fortunately lived to tell the tale when he was liberated by the Americans in 1945! Given the age, he could have been his grandfather or a brother of a grandfather. It seems too coincidental that someone with the exact same name and also located in Groningen was not related to Rob. Such new pieces of information, like when I managed to dig up Rob’s media appearances at the Beeld en Geluid institution, provide fresh fuel for my Rob-flame.

Pseudo-skeptical, unbelieving, and disapproving scoffers and deniers came and lingered. I pay no further attention to these individuals, but I still want to mention them once. Nevertheless, our love triumphs. Surprise! We are still standing. After ten years. And as far as I’m concerned, we will always continue to do so.

Multiverse

I recently replaced my iPad Pro, unfortunately just a bit too early for the latest version (secretly, I’m a bit annoyed, perhaps replace it early). After that, I subscribed to an Apple TV subscription again because: free for three months. And as the first thing, after binge-watching the entire Harry Potter series, I randomly clicked on Apple Originals and watched those. And indeed, there, with iron determination, Apple also presented quantum physics and cosmic insights. The Apple Originals 2024 series “Dark Matter” and “Constellation” revolve entirely around this theme, and so do the Apple Originals 2023 series “Crowded Room” and the movie “Ghosted.”

Two screen-photos of the Apple Ghosted movie and I added the cat in the fridge.

Nothing happens by chance, it seems time and time again. That’s precisely what I’ve been preoccupied with since the beginning of the Lion Hearts blogs: trying to determine ‘where’ Rob is now, if he still exists, and how our relationship extends so far across the universe and even beyond the universe. I’ve delved into highlights of quantum physics several times in my Leeuwenharten blogs, such as in Lion Hearts VII, quantum entanglement like with Schrödinger’s cat, the multiverse idea, and the (quantum) entangled pair.

“The idea of a second, twin or Counter-Earth is not the same as the concept of a Parallel or Multiverse world. The two concepts do have in common that they both suggest that strange things are going on in our universe, and that there’s much more than meets the eye. ” Lion Hearts V

“My impression of the existence of “astral”, parallel, multiverse worlds is that together they enable a continuum. One world is attached to the other, and together the worlds form an infinite “DNA” strand, through which people also travel, creating an eternal link of interlocking possibilities. ” Lion Hearts VI

Hot stuff! Just to be clear: I know very little about quantum physics, and the cheese not even vegan, as I’ve been eating some goat cheese occasionally lately (that’s new, I hadn’t done that until around 2023). I’ve been assisted by AI in the following piece of text, and I’m putting it forward not only for you but also for myself. I haven’t fully grasped everything yet. But then again, who has? Hopefully, someone with a sharp quantum physics mind can build on it in a positive way.

Can we continue to exist? Can different parallel worlds coexist, as proposed in the many-worlds interpretation of quantum physics? In this interpretation of quantum mechanics, all possible outcomes of a quantum event become reality, but in separate, parallel universes. This means that there may be versions of us that continue to live in other universes while we may be dead in our own universe. Although life and death are absolute states within a single universe, the multiverse offers a perspective of a kind of continuity of existence. What is the influence of the observer, and is the observer actually the key? In the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum physics, the observer plays a crucial role: the state of a system (the superposition in which something is indeterminate, both dead and alive) is only determined by observation. This reminds me of the process of reading books: as soon as you open a book and continue reading, the characters ‘come to life’ again, in a unique way for each reader. Think also of the classic “Die Unendliche Geschichte,” which introduces this principle in a grand manner: as soon as you open the book, the story comes to life and ‘continues’. Michael Ende says something that I imagine aligns with the role of the observer in quantum physics. He suggests that the book belongs to no one and is different for everyone (see the last image in the gallery). So, the observer determines, in line with the Copenhagen interpretation. Although the many-worlds interpretation is less dependent on the observer for determining outcomes, the observer experiences only one of the many possible outcomes in a specific universe. This concept of the multiverse makes us contemplate the infinite possibilities that may surround our existence.

You could simplify this principle even further to just one single unit: Love. As long as there is Love, the subject of that love is also alive. But I don’t mean this only theoretically, but truly alive and breathing. And because this is a blog, I can simply say this without having to prove it under laboratory conditions. Now that the phrase “laboratory conditions” comes up, I want to revisit what I said earlier about the difficulty of proving the existence of out-of-body experiences, in which I myself did not succeed sufficiently. If indeed a multiverse exists, it could be that you project into the ‘wrong’ multiverse, preventing a conclusive match with the version where you are physically present at that moment. Only an out-of-body experience with clear consciousness in exactly the same multiverse would then have a chance of success. Believe me, I’m not secretly trying to convince skeptics, I’m simply presenting it as a thought, a possibility. But this is not fantasy. Rob is truly present. His influence is felt day and night, as seen in my previous blog Syncblast 2024. I even believe that Rob not only protects me but also my bike, the Trek 7.3 that saw the light of day on Monday, June 3, 2013, and that I have been riding for over 10 years now: the red bike that faithfully accompanies me. Another lucky ten-year anniversary!

Yes, I believe that Rob’s influence extends so far, and much further. The (pseudo)skeptics, like Pepijn van Erp, haven’t dared to challenge me regarding the Leeuwenharten blogs. Oh yes, he considered it (tell me it’s not true, Van Erp), he was already working on it. But they can’t win this battle because love conquers all. Always. Strange things happen in this regard as well, things that make me think that the cosmos and Rob are not exactly gentle when it comes to protecting me, because they do. The stakes seem to be extremely high.

The Davis house

This house where I’ve been living since October 2011 is a laid-back and, as far as I’m concerned, magical-realistic house. As seemingly? easily as my ex walked out the door here in 2017, that’s how attached I am to this house.
In this house lived my housemate Jocelyn. When my ex left, I found myself in an acute financial attention situation. I started looking for housemates, and Jocelyn was the first to walk in here as a candidate through a Facebook advertisement. From the summer of 2017 until the beginning of the pandemic, I had housemates. I immediately liked Jocelyn. She stayed for two years to complete her bachelor’s degree in Psychology at UC Davis. Then she left back to Los Angeles, where her family lives. We didn’t keep in touch. But then there was a surprise here. A snippet from her email, which I received on March 9, 2023: “[…] I always thought you were a cool and interesting person despite us not talking for a while. And over time my appreciation for the experience at the house has grown, as well as an interest for Dutch culture. I made a friend from the Netherlands and we like to share things about each other’s cultures and have even sent gift packages with things like snacks/foods from our countries. (It turns out I’m not the biggest fan of licorice…) In fact, I am making a trip with my brother to Europe later this month, visiting the Netherlands, Belgium, and France for 1 week.” I even received a postcard from the Efteling, where she had been. She didn’t know that this meant something to Rob and me because she hadn’t read my blogs. All of this was such a surprise to me that, as far as I’m concerned, it falls under magical realism. Suddenly, I also knew who I could leave my concrete belongings as well as my digital legacy to, see my previous blog for that. It all fell into place; she has even started learning the Dutch language, she knows me and the house, and she’s also a Leo by zodiac sign. When she left as a housemate, she gave me a small plastic lion. It now sits by a portrait of Rob. Since mid-April 2024, she has been living with the Dutch friend and his parents to explore how the match works. She’s quite a talented artist, as seen in image 1, and in image 2, a photo of her visit to Bataviastad:

When I asked Meta AI to depict Another Davis and described it in just a few sentences, I had to endure a lot of junk results. But suddenly, a stroke of luck appeared, as almost always happens with me. A house that seems to have been sawed in half, with a small part on the left to refute that idea. First, a “Huw” flashed through my mind, and then a “Hey!”. I live in the right half of a teal (blue-green) colored, wooden duplex house with a slightly sloping roof, as seen from the street. But I absolutely didn’t ask Meta AI for this! The next day, I saw even more striking details in this coincidence: the exact color of my current house, the lawn as I have it in my front yard, even the coniferous trees, like the coniferous tree in my front yard, were correctly placed in the background in the AI image. This AI representation came with complete magical realism straight from the cosmos to me. And I can assure you, AI isn’t there yet, they can’t read minds if you describe your desired house in five sentences. I hadn’t used the term “duplex house,” only “house.” But that’s how it is: Rob also lives in this house, in the ‘counterpart’, which would make this house one (and not the duplex part of my nice earthly neighbors Tamera and Syed). The magical realism between Rob and me was already there with our addresses in the Netherlands: Rob lived at Westerkade 20 in Groningen and I at Weststraat 20 in Scheveningen.

The magical-realistic Earth

I would like to conclude this blog with a vision of all the worlds that exist. It will undoubtedly come across as science fiction, but who knows, perhaps Rob and I are close to the fire. I believe that human civilization on Earth has various possible futures, in what I call the ‘multiverses.’ I now put quotation marks around the word ‘future’ because, given the above, time is not linear but rather an infinite series, a ‘ball,’ of possibilities. One possibility is that humanity will completely destroy itself, with wars already happening but on a global scale and even more devastating. The other possibility, which I hope for and consider equally likely, is that humanity will become wiser and make every effort to save what can be saved. In that case, I predict a world imbued with magical realism, where ‘synchronicities’ play an increasingly significant role, and wondrous events are observed worldwide through the perception rifts in the cosmos, which are also demonstrable to science. In my expectation, these perception rifts will become larger and more numerous, thinning the veils between the multiverse worlds and beckoning a unity of worlds. The progress in studying the strange leaps of quantum physics and the growing interest in it, in my opinion, send a clear signal in that direction.

Courtesy Eline Hulspas. Lightly edited by me

Although I’m not a fan of repetition, I’m going to repeat this song that I already shared and discussed in “The White Raven“. The emphasis here is on the parts in bold:

When the desert sun has passed horizon's final light
And darkness takes it's place...
We will pause to take our rest.
Sharing songs of love,
Tales of tragedy.

The souls of heaven
Are stars at night.
They will guide us on our way,
Until we meet again
Another day.

When a poet sings the song and all are hypnotized,
Enchanted by the sound...
We will mark the time as one,
Tandem in the sun.
The rhythm of a hymn.

The souls of heaven
Are stars at night.
They will guide us on our way,
Until we meet again
Another day.
When the dawn has come
Sing the song,
All day long.

We will move as one,
Bear the load
On the road.

The souls of heaven
Turn to stars
Every single night
All across the sky...
They shine.


Lion Hearts previous parts

Part I – Rob Nanninga – Who took (t)his picture?
Who took (t)his picture?
Drawings I made
Who took (t)his picture, continued
Question answered
More photos of Rob Nanninga
Footnotes
Part II – Lion, Where Are You?
Cuddly lions
Devastated even before I officially knew
Looking for Rob after he passed away
The other end of the universe
Finding Rob
Footnotes
Part III – Rob Nanninga, The Lion
How we met
The Rob-Constantia connection
The fallout and Rob’s passing
Astral Wanderwege
Astral cycling
Astral Blitz
Magical Realism
Astral Wanderwege, continued
The astral Peter R. de Vries
Finding Rob, recap
Astral Wanderwege, continued
The magic (intermediate) final
“Stenny” & “Parameter”, A FOK Story In 9 Images
Footnotes
Part IV – Lion Hearts
Intro
Plush lions
The amazing Whiskers
Plush lions continued
Turning point
The jealous lion
The Rob Nanninga lion quad
Caring for the lions
Cycling and seeing Rob
Rob in my dreams, role-play
Rob’s photo and the drawing I made
Magical realism, the lion ring of God
Rob’s music and Darkwood
Rob in my out-of-body and related experiences
Rob’s healing influence
Lion hearts
Stats and “raps”
Meanwhile
Rob Nanninga lion art in collaboration with Neural Painter
Footnotes
Part V – The Roar
Part I: The Roar
Part II: Roaring Events
Raptures: Orgasmic Outbursts
Out-of-body and dream related events
The wish-you-were-here-song
The enclosing
The sudden swoop
Koningsdag
Rob emerging
Air-jumping Lions
Moving in with Rob
Pepijn
Rob in the air
The not-vegan, whistle-lollipop
Erect tail
Getting through
The shepherds
Striking things named separately
Funny positions
Music and love songs
Seeking Vice versa
Dense shaped
Healing effect
Getting better all the time
Kissing skills
Astral eroticism
Rob traveling to me!
Footnotes
Part VI – Steppin’ Out With My Baby 🕺
Part I: “Steppin’ Out With My Baby, Can’t Go Wrong Cause I’m In Right”
Another Davis
Let’s get physical
On the crook side
Part II: Robs en Constantia’s Steppin’ Outs
Raptures
OBEs and related experiences
Footnotes
Part VII – Quantum Entanglement
The magic-realistic Live Photo in Davis-Ivy Town
Quantum Entanglement
Snert particles!
New media files!
Gallery Space and Quantum Entanglement
Footnotes
Part VIII – Ascension
(2019-)2020
Gym blues
Plans for the Netherlands
Magical Realism continues
Robbert and Stan
Robbert
Stan and Alan
Edibles
The Brakes
Future
Rob Nanninga quotes
Gallery 2020
Footnotes
Part IX – Wanderjahre (Journeyman years)
2021
Lion 10!
Gallery
Aviator in town,
A tribute to the Night Witches, “Unknown Soldier” and to Darkwood:
Family, mother
Miracles and other wonders
Gallery continued

Disclaimer: The following can be seen as a quest and thus also as an encouragement and stimulus for others to conduct similar research into understanding our reality, which, I dare say, is infinitely more complex and deeper than it appears to the human eye. My blog is therefore not intended as the bearer of a new dogma.

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION: MY 350 DIARIES 1979-2022 FULLY DIGITIZED

Digitized Diaries 1979-2022: A Reflection

February 3, 2023 – Constantia Oomen

After 54 days of hard work, I have successfully digitized all 350 of my diaries and got rid of over 100 kilograms of paper by donating them to the wheelie bin for the Friday trash pickup in Davis (hurray!). However, I kept the early childhood and high school diaries, and special diaries, such as poem diaries. Spanning from December 1, 2022 to January 23, 2023, on most of the days I worked for an average of six to eight hours a day, capturing images of each diary page, and any loose or semi-loose items that were in my diaries, with my iPhone14ProMax. The process was both challenging and cathartic as I alternated between reliving happy and painful memories while doing so.

I was able to rediscover my old self, who was both joyful and depressed (I was kind of surprised to discover this very happy side of me of the past), and saw my life flash before my eyes as I imagine people do on their deathbed or shortly afterwards. My diaries revealed the most frequent themes in my life, the majority of which revolved around relationships, romantic and consummated and unrequited. Despite the depth of content of the diaries (one diary literally weighing over one kilo by the way), my diaries provide great entertainment value, offering an overview of my life from this bird’s-eye perspective.

In a nutshell, my 350 diaries chronicled my as many ups as downs, my dreams and out-of-body and astral experiences, all my relationships, my reflections on the wickedness of people and the state of the earth and my marriage to Jeroen and my everlasting Rob Nanninga love story. Initially, I considered publishing all my diaries while omitting too private details (like full names), but I changed my mind when I started reading the content about my marriage. Roughly speaking, from 2000 the diaries become less suitable for publication because, and this is quite obvious, right?, the distance to past events is getting shorter and still can reveal secrets for some people. I don’t want to cause unnecessary waves: the purpose of this review of my diaries is always constructive, to see the value of meta-reflection as well as always having access to (personally) important information. I will publish childhood, high school, and diaries of my student days and working career until about the turn of the century, while omitting family names (I have to look into this). And of course I already tell the Rob Nanninga story in great detail online.

This is a first selection of my digitization journey, featuring standout items like drawings, intense diary entries, poems, photos, and postcards that literally fell out of my diaries. I will publish my diaries and parts thereof on my new WordPress domain constantiaoomendiaries.wordpress.com , stay tuned! I am immensely grateful to my former self for this invaluable gift of having a detailed and reliable access to my entire life, now fully digitized. Please swipe through and click on the image for the explanation or translation. This specific collection is not chronological, but most dates are provided.

Who was I then? Apparently, I was a Goddess of Love. And this time around, I’m not going to hide it.



🇳🇱 Gedicht van Constantia
🇺🇸 Lyrical work by Constantia


🇳🇱 Gedicht van Constantia
🇺🇸 Lyrical work by Constantia


🇳🇱 Kopie brief naar mijn vader (ik was 21)
🇺🇸 Copy letter to my dad (I was 21)


🇳🇱 Zeer bijzondere Rob Nanninga encounter
🇺🇸 Very special Rob Nanninga encounter


Constantia’s Social

December 11, 2022

This is the last straw. Elon Musk is now actively promoting Donald Trump on Twitter this weekend. Mastodon is no option (it feels so dark in there, just dark, not dark dark), so I will start writing some updates here, have to figure out how to proceed. This was cycling around lovely Davis today. Bought a colorful wreath at Trader Joe’s. Hope it will spread joy and bring good luck! And wow, do you see that Lion’s head in the sky at the Dave Pelz Bike Overpass Bridge photo? It’s Rob Nanninga, roaring and laughing! Always there with his love and support.
I photograph and digitize in this way my +-350 diaries these months, so there is no factual chance I will or could get bored. I am creating physical space (and mental peace!) this way.

January 29, 2023
A new blog is in the making and yes, even a new website is booked. Finalized digitizing my exactly 350 diaries on 1-23-2023 (yes, nice double, huh) … Enough material to fill an entire website. Stay tuned!
https://constantiaoomendiaries.wordpress.com

Download Lion Hearts as blog book!

The Lion hearts blogs are long blogs, especially Part IV and Part V are sturdy bites (each good for around 16,000 words), and together they form one whole. That is why I have merged part I-VIII into one .pdf file. Admittedly, it is the avant-garde of a real publishers edition, but I still present you with satisfaction the blog book:

Lion Hearts I-VIII Blogbook!

> Lion Hearts-By Constantia Oomen (click for .pdf download) <

If something is unclear during viewing or reading, you can always fall back on the online version, for example for clicking links and viewing images.

Online Lion Hearts (click)

Download Leeuwenharten als blogboek!

De Leeuwenharten blogs zijn lange blogs, vooral deel IV en deel V zijn stevige bites (elk goed voor zo’n 16000 woorden), en samen vormen ze één geheel. Daarom heb ik deel I-VIII samengevoegd in één .pdf file. Toegegeven, het is de avant-garde van een echte uitgevers-editie, maar toch presenteer ik u met voldoening het blogboek:

Leeuwenharten I-VIII Blogboek!

> Leeuwenharten-Door Constantia Oomen (klik voor .pdf download) <

Mocht er nu iets onduidelijk zijn, of indien u toch echt de links in de tekst wilt kunnen aanklikken, afbeeldingen in het groot bekijken, enzovoort, dan kunt u altijd teruggrijpen op de online versie.

Online Leeuwenharten (klik)

December 2013

Added on: 12/17/2013 02:12 pm

After a year, an update. 

– We still live in Davis.
It turns out that our initial choice was the very best too. After checking out San Francisco and surrounding area, like Hercules and San Rafael, and visiting lots of other places, we have concluded, there’s no place like… Davis. It’s safe and peaceful, we have enough living space with three bedrooms, 1.5 bathroom, a large kitchen, very large living room and garden, there is beautiful nature, mountains in the near distance, lots of space for me to bike on a flat subsurface, an Army of Love in our garden with a steady growing amount of birds and a small army of Squirrels.

Our feathery buddies in our front- and backyard include:
Anna’s Hummingbird, Scrub Jay, House FinchMourning Dove, Robin, Cedar Waxwing, American Goldfinch, Dark-Eyed JuncoRed-breasted Nuthatch (they sound like Zebra Finches!), Mockingbird, White-crowned Sparrow, Downy Woodpecker, Hermit Thrush, Red-shafted Northern Flicker And more!

* I will continue to update this list when I have more names of loyal birdie visitors. 

In Davis, additional: Turkey Vulture

Regular busy birdie day in our backyard (iPad photo), Mourning Dove in bird feeding trough and next to it

Regular squirrel day in our backyard (iPad photos)

Junco in our backyard

Hummingbird in our backyard and on our Hummingbird swing

 

Anna’s Hummingbird in our front yard

Red-shafted Northern Flicker in our Silk Oak

Squirrel in our backyard

Detail of squirrel in our backyard (all photos by me)

Davis is a perfect starting point for trips to San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, Los Angeles, San Diego etc.. We have all the stores we need here in a very close proximity and at our doorstep: Trader Joe’s, Co-Op, Wholefood, Grocery Bargain Market, Nugget Market, Costco… and a lot more. Furthermore, UC Davis is all around us: an intelligent, vivid sphere to live in, with fantastic annual events like UC Davis Picnic Day (check out my clips of that on my YT Channel).

– We visited San Diego in the Summer of 2013, and I have to admit that San Diego maybe is even more beautiful than Northern California. We discovered a lot of new birds out there, like the Great Horned Owl. This fantastic bird has filled me with a desire to live there too. So let’s keep that in mind!

– Jeroen has an even better job now, as Programmer V. Before that, he was a Programmer II and he just leaped forward with three steps at a time. In his free time, he has become a real computer game boss, always eager to explore new ways to shape his programming skills.

– I have stopped working at the German Language School in Sacramento.

– We bought a Glock 19 mm, and have practiced thoroughly at the Gun Range in Sacramento. We both like shooting! Did you know all the Glocks, whatever the size, are the same price? At this time: $499 (without tax).

Constantia with her Glock 19

– We have bought an Open Wheeler game seat, because we love to race indoors. My favorite race program is called: Test Drive Unlimited, I really love to race (virtually) on Hawaii and Ibiza in a Bugatti Veyron. That has become my favorite car too. Maybe own one one day?

–  Speaking of Hawaii, we definitely want to go there as soon as time will allow it. Another travel plan consists of the direct California Zephyr train trip from Davis to Chicago (and maybe return by air plane).

– My eye sight continues to get worse (thanks, dad , love you anyway), and I have far worse eyes than any of the other family members including dad Joris: left: -9.25, +2, right: -7.75, +2

– After a very late start (getting my driver’s license in 2009), I am a pretty good driver now and it’s one of my new favorite things to do. I have a lot of catching up to do, here in beautiful America. Everything I missed doing in The Netherlands, I do here in California. Another example is the bath tub: we didn’t have one in Scheveningen, and we do have one here. So for a long time, I often was taking two bath tubs treats on one day. Now, I go in the bath tub once a day, almost always with Epsom Salt, taking facial very aromatic masks etc.. I simply can’t get enough of the bath tub.

– After quite some years not reading that many books (though listening to audiobooks), I have picked up reading, and read a lot now. Always with my contact lenses removed, because of my troublesome multifocal sight, I can’t read with lenses, even when they are multifocal. Without my contact lensens, I have to hold the book really close to my eyes, or wear my old pair of glasses, which still works pretty good.
Since discovering Nelson DeMille, I find it disappointing to read other authors like James Patterson and Mary Higgings Clark, but I do okay Karen Rose (she can write nerve wracking). Nelson DeMille is a great teacher for me, and I absolutely love his wit and very keen, intelligent humor and observations. I ony avoid his latest book “The Quest”  that turns out to be a reprint of a much older book of his, but then with more sex in it; it has very bad reviews, and I don’t want or need my very high opinion of Nelson destroyed by one possible misstep. I can only thank him for fueling the sacred reading light with new oil.
My reading location is foremost: the bath tub.

Nelson DeMille’s books and audiobooks (iPad photo)

– The weather in Northern California is ab-so-lute-ly amazing. Every day is a sunny day, with endless blue skies. First, I had to get used to that every-day-is-a-holiday feeling because of the sun here. Now we are used to it, and when there are a couple of clouds, we consider it ‘bad weather’ and stay inside. Yes, you get spoiled very fast.

– I laugh up my sleeve diabolically (yes, I know I’m bad) when acknowledging some Dutch stuff, like the terrible weather, the terrible incestuous bad TV shows, the problem with ‘bontkraagjes’ (though that object itself isn’t funny at all), or the fact that they consider an Euro Jackpot of 10 million to be large. (we have a Mega Millions Jackpot today (December 17)  of $636 million) .
Everything seems so small now in The Netherlands. Of course, we have some good memories there, but we are very happy to be future USA citizens (we plan to become US citizens in 2016, and I will vote for Hillary Clinton then).
I do have to admit, I reclaimed some European food stuff, like Bertolli pasta sauce, things they don’t make that well here in the US. Once in a while, I order something at the Dutch Store in Michigan. Why not have the best of both worlds, huh? But the US has a lot to offer for us vegans, like a very good range of vegan pizzas and marshmallows.
A little late (but better late than never) I discovered Trader Joe’s, and they have the good bread here (without the unhealthy long list of ingredients of average US bread), containing no sugar or high fructose corn syrup (this is an ingredient I have learned to avoid). Much like the great German bread in fact. Trader Joe’s is truly a perfect store with good prices for very good and pure food.

At Trader Joe’s they have American ánd European food of high quality and good price – Belgian Endive

– We love the TV Show Shark Tank.

– I have truly discovered e-Bay and Amazon (and more of course),  and order a lot of necessities and not-necessities online; only food I buy in our direct surrounding area, but even some food products I buy online. Stuff from all over the United States of America is shipped to our J Street in Davis.

– Yes, I still have frequent out-of-body experiences (and related experiences), and lately, all the more. I am very thankful for that, I wouldn’t want it any other way.

– In January 2014, Jeroen and I will be been married for 9 years already and even years longer than that together.

Jeroen and me, me reading the iPad book and he controlling the computer game – iPad photo by reversing camera (and with help of mirror)

– I have biked a lot, it keeps me in an overall good shape, both physically and mentally. More than 12242 km (7606 miles) since February 17, 2011.

– Emigrating was a little easier for Jeroen than it was for me; of course, he’s younger and I think age is of importance (let’s be real). In retrospect, I can see that I was a little more fearful than he was, but it turned out that the fear was unnecessary. I felt a little bit of the outsider the first year in Davis. Jeroen quickly found his way around; I took a little longer to drive without the TomTom and feel assured to do so. That kind of stuff.
Everything is different here, and people are different. There is a lot more reason to smile here, and so people do, and I had to refind my lighter self, but I think I am getting there real fine.

Furthermore, there was some adjusting for me to do regarding the very warm nights in the Summer and some chilly nights in the Winter (we have a wooden house here, with a different heating system than in The Netherlands), but I have adjusted to that with a great – made in Texas – bed fan in the Summer, and a ‘new’ body that adjusted to Californian standards. Actually, the Summer of 2013 wasn’t nearly as hot as the Summer of 2012, and the bed fan wasn’t needed that desperately. Jeroen didn’t have a problem with Californian temperatures, not even with the hot nights.
There were some challenges concerning cockroaches in our backyard in the Summer, but that ‘problem’ too, I have addressed. You just have to keep your garden very clean and remove bird and squirrel food every evening very conscientiously.  It wasn’t difficult, we just had to learn.

Summarized, immigrating does require flexibility, but if you have that, it is very rewarding and an immense boost for your body, brain and spirit (assuming you have made the right choice like we did, choosing the country and State that’s right for you).

My happy feet while writing this

Great Horned Owl

Sticking around

Added on: 11/01/2012 11:11 am

A short update. After some research of San Francisco (the city we have fallen in love with) and surrounding areas like Daly City, East Bay, San Rafael and Hercules, we have decided to stick around in Davis.

San Francisco is very expensive where housing is concerned. What we are looking for: a Single-Family Home, is almost impossible in San Francisco. We live in a kind of Single-Family Home now in Davis, in fact, it is a large 3 br, 1,5 ba, large kitchen and large living room, extra laundry room, semi-detached house. We have a front, side and backyard with the most amazing circus of all kinds of birds* and squirrels, and we would have to give that up in San Francisco.

* Most prominent birds in our garden: Anna’s Hummingbird, Scrub Jay, House FinchMourning Dove, Robin, Cedar Waxwing, American Goldfinch, Dark-Eyed JuncoRed-breasted Nuthatch (they sound like Zebra Finches!), Mockingbird, White-crowned Sparrow, Downy Woodpecker, Hermit Thrush, Northern Flicker
In Davis, additional: Turkey Vulture

There is more: biking in Davis, Sacramento and surrounding areas is ‘a piece of cake’ with lots of possibilities, because it is flat around here, and that too is a different piece of cake in San Francisco and surrounding areas.

We checked out Hercules: it’s a lovely place, and biking is possible, but it is very limited and there are a lot of elevations. It turns out Davis is very safe too; we heard that places like Richmond, that is close to Hercules, do have crime. The house we checked out in Hercules had an elaborate security system. In Davis, no such thing is needed, because like I told a long time ago, Davis is like a little city in a friendly, safe bubble. Even people in Davis describe it like that, without suggesting something like that to them; they are using the word ‘bubble’ themselves too.

The only thing I really do miss is some thunder and lightning here. Of course, sea wind like you have in San Francisco is wonderful too (and we had that in The Netherlands, Scheveningen). But we only live 1.5 hours away from San Francisco, and we have decided to visit it very regularly, for the wonderful sea (wind), the spectacular views and the delicious vegan food restaurants (in Davis you can eat vegan too and it’s good!). The summers in Davis are pretty warm. In the daytime that is perfectly all right, but the nights are a little too warm. I still have to figure that one out because I don’t sleep very well with a little noisy blowing air conditioning at night.

Davis has still more benefits: all important shops like Grocery Outlet, Co-Op, Costco, Target etc. very nearby. It seems like we are in the heart of everything right here. Davis Picknick Day, to mention one of the magical things around here, is symbolic for the true heart of Davis, and now I have seen and researched other areas in NorCal, I again have to acknowledge the fact that Davis was the best choice and still is. Jeroen totally agrees with it, and it was I in fact, that got the idea of maybe moving again, before looking deeper into it, that is.

I now fully and deeply realize the choice for Davis was a very smart one.

Jeroen has been offered a job as a programmer and he has accepted. Still, if we would have thought that living in Hercules was the thing to do, we would have done it, and then Jeroen would have traveled by car, because he said he wouldn’t mind at all. I still teach in a German School in Sacramento and it is a very nice job and I enjoy it.

I actually get a kick driving myself in the evening, with the radio on, another travel experience and I love travel as much as I love birds, maybe a strange comparison, but still. Maybe the comparison isn’t that strange, because birds and travel are in fact about the same: having wings, moving and enjoying beauty.

There is one thing: if we would win the Lottery (like we have before , the Green Card Lottery) and would have a considerable amount of money to spend, we would be looking for a new place again, probably the Golden Gate area in San Francisco, because there you have Single-Family Homes with gardens, and there is a recreation park too, where you can bike and hike.

Photos ~ all shot by me

Our house

Hummingbird in our backyard

Davis’ Mockingbird

Davis’ Mockingbird

Mourning Doves in our backyard

Mourning Doves in our backyard

The adventures of Squirrel in our back- and front yard:

Squirrel sticking around, like we do

Squirrel riding my bike

Squirrel ‘Studio’ photoshoot, “Striking a pose”

Cat and mouse squirrel play

Cranes birding around Davis

Cedar Waxwings and Robins enjoying our sprinkler system in our front yard

One Year In The USA

Added on: 10/14/2012 12:10 pm

Dear Readers.

I am not sure if you have been missing my blogs, but is has been a year since I wrote one. Maybe some people are wondering how Jeroen and I are doing in the USA?
Some people on my own Dutch forum of www.doorhetraam.nl even wondered whether I was deceased, so I thought: maybe I should write a new blog, it’s long overdue.

We are still living in Davis, and it hasn’t rained here for about 5-6 months now. Every day is a sunny day with an endless blue sky, sometimes a few modest clouds. Our garden is filled with divine Hummingbirds, Scrub Jays and other subtropical birds. Don’t forget the squirrels! We have been doing fine. North California is an amazing, almost heavenly place on Earth. Nature is endless and beautiful, people are very friendly, and the environment is well taken care of.

Since June 2012, I have been teaching German again, part-time, at a German language school in Sacramento. Because I was out a couple of years (since 2007), I had to refresh my German again. Teaching has always been in my blood, so it was not hard to teach again. New was the combo-use of German and English – no Dutch anymore. The American people I have in my classes (age approximately 23-75) are very eager to learn, polite and friendly students. Keeping ‘order’ in the class is not an issue , so I can concentrate on the content of my German curriculum.

A lot has changed. It was only December 2009 that I received my Dutch driver’s license. Now I am driving myself to – among other places – Sacramento. Because it is an evening school, I have to drive back in the dark. My Guardian Angels are still paying attention, because I didn’t ‘crush’ myself or others, not even the car, and I could have, because I am a little night-blind. Because of that, I am wearing my ‘cool’ night glasses when I drive back after dark.

I am certainly not saying that I am a bad driver, because I see a lot (almost everything) and drive carefully and very aware, but I have been making mistakes. In a mysterious way, nothing ever happens, knock knock on wood, and let’s keep it that way. We are driving an Audi A4 we bought in Los Angeles. It’s a fine driving car.

Jeroen is still working as a programmer and is repairing pcs and Macs too. Regarding work, Davis has been a little quiet on him; there is a tough competition here in the lovely and little, student filled City of Davis. Fortunately, he still has customers from the Netherlands. We think San Francisco is a better work place for him.

We both have fallen in love with San Francisco, a city that is a 1.5 hour drive away from Davis. Davis is truly wonderful, but there is almost no wind, no thunder and lightning and no sea. In The Netherlands we lived in Scheveningen for 7 years, we could see the sea from our living room. We miss the wind and the see. We see Hummingbirds and all there is in Davis, in San Francisco as well; so we would still have our feathered friends there, if we move to there. The climate is a little bit more moderate than in Davis: Summers In San Francisco are less hot and Winters are less chilly at night (though it almost never freezes in Davis ánd in San Francisco).

We visit San Francisco as often as we can, and we are always very delighted to be there. It’s a magic place, both in the daytime and in the evening. In the evening and at night, you will see a million distant lights, in a wonderful 3D landscape with buildings and houses on a lot of steep hills. Sometimes you see thick drapes of mist hanging over the hills and mountains like waterfalls. At the coast side you can bike too.
That was one of the main reasons why that we started in Davis, not in San Francisco. In Davis you can bike, like in The Netherlands. In San Francisco you have the most amazing steep streets; you wont believe your eyes as a Dutchie. But you can bike, if you know where to go. And of course you can throw your bike in the car and drive somewhere where you can bike.
San Francisco is very expensive, that is to say, the rent is about $500-800/month more expensive than in Davis, and in Davis the rent is more expensive than in The Netherlands. So we cannot just go there, we have to make sure we can afford it. But the (vegan) food in San Francisco is very good and very cheap, if you want to: 2 lbs (±1 kilo) bananas for only 0.50 $ in the Chinese Quarter, downtown.

I had a job interview at the Goethe Institute in San Francisco and here too: they said I am welcome, as soon as we have come up with a new living plan. I really love the school in Sacramento too, so we have to see how we can work everything out. I am very thankful to the school in Sacramento that they hired me, and let me have my first American-German teaching experience.

About German: it turns out that my choice to study German, was not only a good one in The Netherlands, but in the United States as well. German is considered an important language here too, and here likewise, there are almost no certified German teachers / teachers German who have a valid work permit, and I have one. Thanks to Jeroen winning the DV Green Card Lottery, we both have our permanent resident cards and we can work and do (almost) everything American people do. In fact, in 4 years from now, we are planning to become Americans, to apply for Naturalization. You can, if you have lived for 5 years in the US and we want that very much.

Back to German: it’s the same old story as it is in The Netherlands: not much students to learn German, not many German teachers. People keep seeing Germans and/or the German language as related to World War II. A pity for them, but better for me, because all schools that are teaching German in California, are steadily looking for German teachers. I cannot teach at regular American high schools, at least: I am not sure about it, because maybe I would need a Californian teacher’s certificate and that takes a lot of money and time to get it. But I can teach at adult schools like the one where I am teaching right now.

Here you can see my Green Card:

This Green Card still makes me very proud and Jeroen and I are very grateful to have won the Green Card Lottery.
The only thing I can’t do, besides of becoming the first female President of the United States (because you have to be born in the United States for that, the Republicans didn’t even believe Obama, that he was born in Hawaii) , is vote. Nor can Jeroen. You have to be naturalized for that, but we do hope we can vote in four years from now. Maybe we are just in time to jump on that voting train in 2016.
Of course, Obama will win the 2012 Elections, not hunter-killers and liars Romney and Ryan. Can you believe that Romney likes to kill innocent pheasants, the most beautiful, colorful birds? Ryan is a regular hunter too. And I can call them liars, because they áre, and even the Democrats can call them that, and then so can I.

Even my hairdresser, her name is Soon, said Obama is going to win the 2012 Elections and she is not even in his favor. I have always though Obama will be reelected, of course because I want to, but because of another reason too. There is no place for somebody like Romney and Ryan anymore, times are changing and people are getting more aware. It is not  “I” anymore, but “We”. Ryan and Romney still don’t understand, and Romney was saying what he was really thinking: that he didn’t care about the 47 % of the Americans who are not in his favor. He’s twisting and turning, just to get elected now, and squeezing the truth till there is nothing left of it. But I firmly believe this time the Cosmos will say NO to the Republicans (again). Of course, Jeroen and I are here now, and hope to shine a little extra to make it so.

Next election we hope to vote ourselves: of course for the Democrats and for an animal and bird loving (female?) President, not ever! for somebody who enjoys killing pheasants and other divine creatures.

Next time, I hope I will write you form our new house in San Francisco. We are not there yet, but it is our goal. I always like to think: “Waar een wil is, is een weg” (Dutch): “Where there is a will, there is a way.”

That’s me in front of San Francisco

I forgot to mention that I am working as a volunteer; it’s in the Pence Art Gallery in Davis. That is wonderful because of the real fine art in this Gallery. There are a lot of talented artists in Davis and surrounding areas.
Look for instance at this piece, it’s nor regularly painted, but made with a very difficult to master lacquer technique (hot wax painting). I adore these two birds!:

Link to Artist

So, Jeroen and I are exploring San Francisco and surrounding areas; here you see Jeroen, looking at me and now at you too:

John in Daly City, San Francisco

If you want to see more photos, then visit my Twitpic, Camera+ and Google pages.

Next year on January 6. 2013, Jeroen and I will be married for eight years already and of course know each other even a lot longer than that. We are still an interesting and matching team. Though we are true opposites some times, there is this magical match. We are completing each other, and if I play a ball, Jeroen will kick it in, and vice versa. Love always leads the way and it is love that glues people together. Only love.

About my out-of-body experiences: I still have them and other interesting phenomena, but I do have a little bumpy road. Immigrating into another climate and totally different country is a little tough at night (high night temperatures, being tired, new bed room etc.), and I have been missing the thunder, lightning and wind here in Davis. Every time I visit San Francisco, my astral energy builds up again, one important reason too to keep on moving.

Btw. Our house in The Netherlands at this moment still hasn’t been sold! Please don’t ask me more about it; the economic wind in The Netherlands is just very bad right now and we had to leave the apartment behind, because we couldn’t wait forever and we didn’t want our Green Cards to slip through our fingers. I do miss my Zebra finches, and canary, every day, I had to leave them behind too, and I still blame myself for that. I miss my mum and dad too.

Oh my, there is so much to update on, after one year, I am so sorry.

I had my fourth book , Through Heaven, in the iTunes store for about a year, but I can tell you, and warn you about Apple (Developers Service Centre): don’t work with them, or when you really have to, be prepared to be very, very patient or to just accept the fact that they just can’t and won’t solve problems that pop up.
Because I had immigrated to the United States, Apple had this problem (turned out to be a HUGE problem for the oh so ‘skilled’ Apple peeps) turning my Dutch account into an American one, with my new American Social Security Number. Daniel, my apps’ developer for Through Heaven, told me in the past, he had problems with Apple too, and that they just didn’t solve them (!).

After one year, iTunes/Apple decided to withdraw my 4 Through Heaven apps – two for iPad, Dutch and English and two for iPhone Dutch and English –  because they just couldn’t get it right.
I have e-mailed them more than fifty times (yes, you read this right, more than fifty times), I was on the phone with them several times, but they kept asking the same question: “What is wrong, can you please make a screenshot of…?” And then: “We are going to solve this, this is your reference number…” etc. They kept appointing new persons to solve it, but none of them did! And then, time and time again: nothing. More than 10 months passed and Apple still couldn’t get my new Social Security Number into their system. Makes you wonder about Apple’s true competence, ay?

So, I got really mad, writing Apple that they most definitely have the worst customer service worldwide, and that I wanted my money back (about $100) for the second year I paid them. That I developed the apps to no avail, because they had now withdrawn them, and that I, after receiving my money back,I didn’t want anything to do with them ever again, and would warn other people. Now I have and now you know.
I am planning to make my children’s book Through Heaven available as free download PDF soon.

I don’t think you think I am exaggerating about the service of Apple, but if you do, I will convince you with this: they decided to give me my money back, and this last person wrote: Apple never refunds, but now we do.
So you know, and I know and they know too, they have been blundering big time; else they wouldn’t have refunded my money.
Let me cite a part of their last e-mail:

I understand that your request was for refund for your renewal purchase. I had sent the previous email to advise you that I was reviewing the issue. We are generally not able to issue refunds however in light of your situation I wanted to review the details of the case prior to making a determination.

After reviewing the details of this case, I am able to issue a refund for your renewal purchase as an exception to our no refunds or exchanges purchase policy. Please allow 5-7 business days for the credit to post to your cardholder account.

Two days ago, I received an (in my eyes very daring) e-mail from Apple, now asking about my ‘experience’ with them. I very happily filled out their form, giving them the lowest review possible and these final words about what I think about their service:

The worst ever!!! After more than 50 (fifty) e-mails, several phone calls and more than 10 months, the problem Apple system was causing with my registration still hadn’t been solved. It still isn’t solved. I asked my money back for the second year because my 4 apps were withdrawn because of Apple’s OWN mistake. Now I have developed the 4 apps to no avail. I will advise everybody I know NOT to work, ever, with Apple Developer Support! This is no joke, I am dead serious.

Why am I telling you all this? Well, to do warn you about Apple, and to let you know why I wasn’t able to keep my Through Heaven apps in the iTunes store. I regret that very much, but you will be able to download the children’s book soon.

It is almost Halloween here, and maybe I should wear an Apple costume to complete the ‘scary Halloween characters’.

Halloween Scare-Crow
Painting by artist Linda Apple

One more thing, something trivial, but maybe you like to know anyway. Our favorite American TV series now (we are watching it on www.hulu.com), is The Dead Zone.

Are you following me on Twitter? You can, here (updated). On Twitter, I am most active and you will find updates almost every day.

So, see you around, somewhere, somehow. Next time a blog from San Francisco?

Little peeps (protected species in San Francisco) on San Francisco shore line

Immigrated! Children’s Book!

Added on: 10/24/2011 07:10 pm

Immigrated on: World Animal Day, Tuesday, October 4. 2011
Left Thousand Oaks on: Thursday, October 13. 2011
Moved in new house in Davis on: Friday, October 14. 2011
Official lease start date: Saturday, October 15. 2011
Written on: Monday, October 24. 2011

Dear you.

How have you been doing lately? I know you all have been dying to hear something from me , and I feel very ashamed that it took me over 5 months to write a new blog.

You Dutch people must feel awkward that I’m writing in English now. I could write it in Dutch too, but maybe I’m a little bit too lazy for that, I’m not sure.

Besides that, guess I always want to do things thoroughly and writing in Dutch feels like I’m not doing it thoroughly. But I hope you can all understand my English?

The update is a big one: Jeroen and I have immigrated to the United States of America. I wrote about Jeroen winning the DV 2011 Lottery, and thus winning Green cards to live and work in the U.S.A. We started out in Thousand Oaks, which is near L.A., and  it seems like paradise to us, because of its fabulous trees and views. Keith and Amber were there to assist us in our first steps on American ground, and they did that in an unprecedented manner.

They made sure our start in the U.S.A. was as smooth as it could be.

We then had to find out where we wanted to live and considered the following places: Thousand Oaks, Walnut Creek and Davis. The first is like I mentioned: a very pleasant place with the most beautiful trees I have ever seen and very friendly people. But the neighborhood is not as accessible as we would have liked it to be, for Jeroen and his potential customers, and for me to educate and instruct in German and/or Out Of Body Courses! Also to me it is very important to be able to bike, and in Thousand Oaks I would have been the exception, and I’m not good in biking uphill! Biking isn’t common throughout the U.S.A. and the main reason is that the hills and mountains make it impossible. Bikers are like stray wild, they are outlawed in a way and not safe at all. Only in some places, you can bike.

We looked around in Walnut Creek, but felt the people there were not outgoing at all (except from the nice lady that showed us an apartment): they didn’t look at us, didn’t greet us very friendly etc.. This was very different in Thousand Oaks!) The traffic in Walnut Creek was very confusing and not relaxed too. We didn’t feel welcome in Walnut Creek!

It was a more than a 6 hour drive from Thousand Oaks to Walnut Creek (it’s in San Francisco East Bay area), and it was already in the late afternoon, but we decided to drive up to Davis the same day and we arrived there late. The sun was already setting and in the last light of that day, we arrived in Davis.

Then, the magic hit me, it truly did!

We were driving through this very friendly little city, where all the houses are some way or the other covered with (kind of low) trees. It’s like a fairy tale  city: a lot of houses lying in what almost seems to be a sort of forest. Anyway: this is what it looks like in the evening and at night. The houses (many of them with no floors) are all very different, but ‘equal’. It seems all people are equal here, for the houses do not differ that much in size.

I (inwardly) had the strangest sensation  – I’ve never had before – that everywhere I looked, bubbles of energy were rising from the houses and trees, upwards to the sky. Like this whole city was just sparkling and bubbling with energy. The energy here was and is very much alive! I guess I perceived the astral version of the city.

I wouldn’t have noticed it like this, when we would have arrived there in the daytime.

We arrived so late because we took the ‘wrong’ way, by accidentally avoiding toll ways; this was a set up by our Tomtom.

We chose that option, because we were confused about it, and then had to drive two hours from Walnut Creek to Davis, instead of one, when you do want take the toll way! (and pay a $5 bill for it).

But this was good, because now I got hold of the astral sight of the city, and it was our first acquaintance with Davis. To me it seemed it took forever to get to Davis; time was crawling by the minute as Jeroen was driving to Davis, instead of flying, but hey, we arrived at exactly the right time.

We ate some good vegan pizza and hit the Wifi in the Pizza restaurant. We by then – disappointed about Walnut Creek – had in fact already decided to live in Thousand Oaks (and Davis was just a curiosity, though I picked it out in The Netherlands as the best possible spot, because of its geographical location and it’s flatness, so I could bike), but while we were sitting there, eating and WiFi-ing, I said to Jeroen: “We seriously need to consider this city, I am not sure about it, it  could be something.” Jeroen agreed. After sleeping a night over it in Walnut Creek (where we stayed in a small hotel), Davis started to grow on us, and the next day, we decided to visit it again, to check it out again now during the daytime, to make sure what we felt being there. We drove up there again (now in one hour, not two).

And then things really changed fast. Again, we saw people biking everywhere, the same friendliness in everybody’s faces, we heard very clever, bright, verbal word jokes and conversations on the streets and on the terraces, I felt that sparkling energy in the houses, in the trees, in everything. We saw how open and just bursting with energy this little city is, and then Thousand Oaks was overruled by this little giant.

We decided to look for a house in Davis! So we did and we found it. We were looking on Craig’s List and couldn’t find what we were looking for (we looked at some houses by driving around), but then I changed the settings in Craig’s List to houses with a rental price under  $1600, not under $1500, what Jeroen had set. And: there it was and popped up: our house. it wasn’t even $1600, and why it did pop up suddenly now, i don’t know, but there it was. Our eyes started to shimmer and we both said: let’s go there now to check it out. We did and fell in love! It’s the most lovely house, at least twice as big as the apartment we had in The Netherlands, with front, side and back garden, car port, 3 bedrooms, 1.5 bath rooms (with 1 bath), a huge kitchen with extra kitchen island and a very large, and very bright living room. Tiles on the floor everywhere (I am allergic to carpet, and most houses in the U.S.A have that, and because of it were not eligible), and screen doors and windows everywhere. The kitchen  is brand new.

The house has a washer, dryer, a very big refrigerator and even a dishwasher.

In the front garden, there is a robust, straight, healthy and friendly pine tree and in the back garden there are four lovely trees. One of them is located in the middle at the back, and is offering shade against too much heat and sunshine.

This was just perfect and we applied for it immediately. We succeed (we had to pay two months of deposit, instead of one), and we could move in that same week on Friday. We were in Walnut Creek and Davis on Saturday till Tuesday. We got back in Thousand Oaks on Tuesday and left that Thursday again, where we stayed in the very good Econo Lodge hotel. The next day (Friday) we got the key to the house and then we had our own house!

Two strange things happened while being in Davis. We hadn’t even signed the lease yet, but after checking out the house on Sunday and doing some shopping, Jeroen returned (with me ) to the Econo Lodge and I then felt he was driving the wrong way when he drove up the parking lot of the hotel. I expected him to drove up to ‘our’ house, this was spontaneously and unwilled, it just came over me!

Another strange thing happened the next morning. I woke up early in the hotel and thought I was already in our new house (again: we hadn’t even signed the lease yet) and thought I heard guys shoveling the branches and leaves that were piled up in front of the house (not the hotel!). They do that here: people makes bunches of their garden leaves and put it on the street and then the local authorities come to pick it up. I thought a) I was in the house already (it felt like ours already!) and b) I ‘heard’ shoveling of leaves and branches.

But none of the two applied, though they applied in the Cosmic sense of the word! Because later that day, I discovered, the leaves and branches, that were there the evening before, had been indeed picked this early morning, for they were gone now! So it seemed not only my spirit was already living in this house, I had actually made some kind of out of body observation that was true. This all gave me the pleasant impression everything was going as ‘foreseen’.

It did, because the house owner actually approved us for the house and Jeroen didn’t even had to show proof of his income (we had to pay extra though: one month more deposit, in general you only pay one month deposit) and we could move in, after bringing the cashier’s check (you pay with them here).

We are very happy in our new home and garden. We started gardening already and are attracting birds by feeding them and hanging a Hummingbird feeder in the tree and planting flowers. Yes, there are Hummingbirds here in Davis, we saw them several times already, not yet in our own garden.

There is one downside, and that is that I miss my Zebra finches I had in The Netherlands very much. We had four very old Zebra finches males (two of 6 two of 9 years old). I just couldn’t take them to the United States, because of the very long flight and quarantine (1 month), they wouldn’t have survived that. I struggled for over a year what to do with them, to whom to bring them to, etc.. Finally, we brought them to a very large outdoor aviary, the most beautiful we ever have seen. They arrived there on May 18. 2011, but three out of four have passed away after some weeks and months. It was too much for them and my heart is broken by it, because we, in all nine years we had the finches, never lost one single Zebra finch male. Now they were not with us anymore, they died, one after the other. They were very well taken care of (let there be no misunderstanding) and in the most beautiful aviary, but obviously the impact was too heavy after all. Only one, our little, clever rascal Theo(dore) survived, and the latest news was that he was in excellent health and the chief boss of the aviary. I hope he still is.

So that will be the burden I carry around: our leaving The Netherlands was too much for our 4 Zebra finches veterans. Yes, they were very old, but I’m sure they could have reached the age of 10- 12 years and still had some years to come for them. I feel guilty about this, and I forever will.

Davis is the best thing that could happen to us, and we are very thankful to our American friends Keith and Amber, because they were there for us to offer us their hospitality in the first ten days. We are living in Davis now and picking up our lives here. Jeroen has changed his name to “John”, because Americans just can’t pronounce “Jeroen” (his baptismal names are “Jeroen Johannes”, so this suits him fine) and I have changed my name into my real name “Constantia” because all Americans, reading, speaking and writing that name, spontaneously complimented me on it, they think it is so beautiful, pretty, etc.. So I then thought: well, let’s abandon my nickname “Sten” then, and return to my own baptismal name. Welcome to America, John and Constantia!

We have a new used car, it’s an Audi 4, and we were very lucky to get hold of it (again, thanks to Keith). John is very happy too with our new house and everything, he’s all excited just like me. He will continue to be the “IT Guy” and I will be looking for teaching or instructor jobs, maybe in my own living room, because it is so big, I could give my OBE course in it, like I did in The Netherlands. But in The Netherlands I had to rent a course space in Rotterdam – in “DJOJ”- , but I have the best course room here in my house. With the adjacent kitchen and kitchen island and, the garden as the place to chill out during the course, it could be the best course space I ever had.

Of course this is a big adventure and we are not sure if we are going to make it here, but we definitely don’t want to return to The Netherlands, because we both have outgrown it. We love the Californian climate, the wideness of the country, the thousands of bird species, the squirrels that are as big as cats, the friendly people, the shops, the delicious, outrageous good tasting vegan ice creams. Davis is a dream for bikers too: in this little city, almost everybody bikes, and my bikers heart is jumping up with happiness every time I see this or every time I bike myself in Davis… Davis is magic with it’s so many friendly sports fields and playgrounds, it’s environmental concerns and bikes.

There is some serious astral stuff going on in Davis too (beside of the fact I am there now ), because Charles Tart lives in Davis. He was a good friend of Robert Monroe, the pioneer in out Of Body Experiences and wrote the foreword to his book. Charles Tart writes about Out Of Body experiences and I guess he paved an astral way for me in Davis.

Still, I am not finished, because my children’s book Through Heaven is about to be published. I virtually met Daniël Benjamins, who is an Apple programmer, and he offered me to make iPhone and iPad apps out of my book. This book has been waiting for more than two years, and somehow, the timing wasn’t right, because I just could not get it done, and people who were offering (financial) help, withdrew or were not heard from again. But maybe, this was meant to be. Now it will be an American-Dutch delivery, so there will be four apps: for iPhone: ThruHeaven and DoorDeHemel and for iPad: ThruHeaven and DoorDeHemel.

For the American version Andrew Maggiore stood by me, he’s the best American translator and reviser ever.

What’s up with the ‘ThruHeaven’ name? Well, in the iTunes stores the names of the apps can only be about 12 tokens long, so we had to abbreviate it. But that wasn’t a problem, and I owe the domains http://www.thrubooks.com and http://www.thrubook.com for a long time already, so I must admit I’m a bit of a clairvoyant.

As soon as they’re out, I will notify you and of course, I hope you will buy them. They are very cheap, only $1  /  0,79, so this will be the bargain of the year, if you are looking for some serious and beautiful astral soul food for you and your kid(s).

More photos: most of them taken with iPhone

Look close, that’s Jeroen (John) on top of the rock.

Our house and garden.