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Clay's Personal Travel & Adventure

Amsterdam 2018

Posted on July 23, 2019

By Clayton

There I was, 36000 feet up in the air… again… drunk, happy and in love… again!

I think I have told similar stories before, just each time with a different main cast member.
Nothing could burst my bubble; little did I know that you would be the one to do so.

The flight went by fast and I had 2 seats to myself. Those type of flights are always the best, because 9 hours of doing nothing is a heavy burden. Not being 100% conscience is always the best in this case.

At the airport I met up with my now-former-boss and we had Starbucks coffee, which was good to wake (and sober) me up. I was picked up from the airport by an old friend/former colleague. A funny thing happened at this moment. There was a police control in the parking lane and he was not parked incorrectly. When they checked his driver’s license this turned out not to be valid at the moment so he was not allowed to drive anymore. The cop asked if I had a driver’s license, and I said yes, but it’s from Suriname. The cop said, you are allowed to drive with that here. So I drove from the airport to my cousin’s apartment where I would stay for one night.

Since one of my aunts would travel the following day and we would not see each other those 4 weeks in Holland I decided to take the train to her house in Almere for a visit and later return back to Amsterdam.

The next day I moved to Patrick’s house where I would stay for the remainder of the vacation.
Since it was summer time and I had nothing better to do early that day, my friend that picked me up from the airport asked me if I wanted to go sailing with him and his girlfriend through the canals of Amsterdam. I had never done that before, despite having been in Amsterdam countless times.

It was really fun. The sun bloody hot though. We sailed all across the canals, went to buy some food and ate on the boat. In the late afternoon I returned back to shore as I had another appointment. This time with the main reason why I was in Amsterdam; my Brazilian heartthrob.

Do you know that feeling of missing someone for months and just longing to see them every single day and night… and suddenly they are standing there in front of you…? YASSSS that’s exactly how I felt at that moment. Over the moon!! I probably gave the biggest embrace I have ever given anyone.

We walked around the city center of Amsterdam, and just talked about how our lives have been and what we have been up to. I soon started to feel that the person standing next to me, was not the same person I had last seen in Suriname. Yes, it was the embodiment, but it didn’t feel like the same person. Nonetheless I was more than happy for that moment after longing for so long.

I really wanted the night to last longer, but it came to an end, when my heartthrob had to go home and didn’t feel like spending time at my place. No problem, this was only the first day of a 4-week vacation.

Clay's Personal pAArty

My 30th Birthday Party

Posted on February 9, 2018

By Clayton

So it finally happened… I turned 30 last week… the HORROR!!
I am just joking. It’s actually not that big of a deal to me and I actually do like my birthday. Since you only turn 30 once, I decided to throw a party… but this was not going to be just any regular birthday party… I mean, come on, have we met?!

Party Planning Stress
So it turns out that party planning is a lot of stress. If I had millions of dollars to spill I would have just hired someone to organize the entire thing and let them deal with all the stress. Since I don’t… I had to plan it all myself.

I had this idea for a karaoke birthday party for a while now. As you know, I love karaoke, despite the fact that I cannot sing. I also wanted a photo booth for memorable, crazy, drunk pictures. I also didn’t want every day decorations, so I went on Amazon and order all the decorations, photo props and whatnot that I needed.

As the day to the birthday party came closer I started to stress a lot more. Everything costs a lot of money and it’s a lot of phone calls, emailing and driving places to arrange things. Also I was stressing out because up until 2 weeks before the party the things ordered were not here yet, due to a delay in delivery with the holiday season. But luckily the arrived just in time, so I could ease up a bit after that.

During the planning period I had a few times where I came THIS close to blowing off the entire party and just plan a trip abroad… I luckily know enough people that could help and advise me on things, so once that stress was lifted and I knew exactly what I wanted and needed the party could officially be organized.

The location I had picked was Hotel Babylon. A small, but gorgeous hotel that is not far from my home. I visited that place 2 years ago for the first time and it had left a lasting impression on me. As I was looking for a location for the party, I somehow knew that this would have to be it.

Actual Birthday
On my actual birthday, February 1st, I didn’t do much of celebrating, but mostly drove around doing some shopping and ordering stuff for the following day. In the evening I went to my best friend’s house were we peeled 12kg of potatoes for mashed potatoes. We drank a bottle of champagne while doing so, but that was the only kind of celebration.

When I went home I still wanted to create a playlist for the party and test the karaoke stuff, but my friends advised me to go to sleep. As I get older I cannot pull those all-nighters anymore. And it was about to be a long day so I could use all the sleep I could get it.

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Clay's Personal pAArty

New Year’s Eve 2017

Posted on January 2, 2018

By Clayton

Actually I wasn’t done with my last post. I totally forgot to write how my New Year’s Eve was.

Well it was TOTES AMAZEBALLS!! 😀

Let me first give a short back story: I actually HATE new years’ eve. I am like the Grinch of New Year’s Eve. This is mostly because of my childhood fear of fireworks and my social anxiety (I don’t do large crowds of strangers)… not to mention the heat.

But last year I went out to the annual Galaxy street party with my friends from Holland, and it was fun. It was warm, but not to warm and the music was good and so was the crowd… although it was really crowded. I ended up dancing on the stage, thanks to my “connections”, but I was way too sober, so I thought I should better next year… well I did.

The day didn’t start off great. I wanted to make my way to the city’s center, but decided to stop to fill up my car’s tank. When I was done and wanted to drive away the car wouldn’t start… the battery had died. I had to call my dad for help to help jump start the battery with car and I just drove back home. I almost decided to simply stay home, but I called a cab instead and he dropped me off as close to the city’s center as he could.

I was there quite “early” as it was not that crowded yet. Said hello to the Galaxy owners and started drinking. I soon got bored, since I knew a lot of people, but no one I actually am used to hang with on a regular basis, so I walked to my other friends that were about to meet up nearby. We gather there and started drinking some more. As we had enough we all walked to Galaxy for the street party and by then it was packed with people.

It also started raining, but that didn’t spoil the fun. I eventually ended up on the stage again, same way I did last year, and this time I had a GREAT TIME… little did I know that the best way to have fun on New Year’s Eve was to get wasted.

After a while I went back to my friends and we danced until nearly the end of the street party. I soon was grinding up on 2 hot tourists like it was the pride month closing party or something. I didn’t care much. I was having fun.

After the party we all walked back to the place where we gather for an after party. I may or may have not ended up making out with the tourists (read: I totally did), but this was the best NYE EVER!! After this after-party, one of my friends and I drove to another friend for some food and all I drank there was cold water…which tasted like the sweet nectar of the Gods at that moment.

A little after 10pm I was dropped home at home and later I took a shower and by then it was almost midnight. At midnight I wished my family members a happy new year and went to bed.

Best way to end the year! 😀

Clay's Personal

Happy New Year 2018

Posted on January 1, 2018

By Clayton

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!!

HAPPY 54th BIRTHDAY MOM!

So that was 2017 and what a ride it has been.
Was it special? I guess… it was okay.
Could have been worse, but also could definitely be better.

Quick recap: Finally finished my college, met some new awesome people, went on a much needed vacation, got to see my favorite band perform live for the 6th time, my older brother got married, work has been very good and I learned a lot this year… and probably much more.

Those that know me long enough know that I stopped with making resolutions long ago.

I do want to work on a few things though…
Like, I need to stop being nice to people that take my actions for granted. Not that I expect anything back, I just really need to learn to think about myself more.

Also I have neglected my blog for way too long and want to actively work on that again.

Last… seriously cut back on my bad eating habits.

Hmm, do these count as resolutions?

Anyways… uh… happy new year again, all the best, etc etc etc…
I am going to eat and watch TV now.

Clay's Personal

Reasons to move

Posted on June 8, 2017

By Clayton

DISCLAIMER
The below might be a bit of a rant post, but everything is written in total honesty, so I hope that can be respected. If not, feel free to close the tab and go watch some porn like you’re used to.

__________________

I have never made it a secret that I want to move to Amsterdam.
One of the things that has been holding me back until recently was my studies. For no reason was I about to just quit that and I needed to finish it. Which I successfully did, which you can read in my previous post.

But now I am here, in the city I hope to call home soon.
And yes, I know it’s not all about rainbows, glitter and unicorns. I am way too old and have been here way too often to know this fact. But mentally I just know I belong here. Yes, I have been born in the wrong country and I plan to do something about this as soon as possible.

Now that I am almost 30, I would like to…. wait, what? Seriously?! Ugh… 30… okay, whatever… moving on. Now that I am almost 30, I would like to make serious plans for my exodus.

What are my reasons for wanting to move?

  • Amsterdam just feels like home
    It feels more “home” to me than Paramaribo has ever had. I just belong here.
  • The people are on my wavelength
    It’s great to be among people that share the same thoughts and ideas as me.
    Open-minded. I love that word(s) and it describes me perfectly.
  • The weather
    If you know me, you know I like the cold weather.
    Give me rain, give me snow. I just don’t like the heat and I hate to sweat.
    That makes Holland the perfect place as its colder more often than it’s warm.
    Also the weather is unpredictable and I hate living a predictable life.
  • My non-active love life
    If I ever want a chance to date someone, even if it’s temporary, I would have to move. Back home I cannot seem to find someone that is on my wavelength. Here… let’s just say there are some potential candidates that I would like to call my own. And for a few it even seems mutual. I would be nice to have someone to come home to.
  • Travelling
    It’s a fact that it’s much cheaper to see the world from here. A fact that I have been able to experience myself last year during the 13-country Euro trip. Why stay in one place? The world is ours. But intercontinental flights are not cheap. Certainly not from where I am from.
  • The music concerts
    The type of music I listen to is mostly created by European bands. They do travel the world, but they never visit Suriname as this would not be profitable for them. Even traveling with a full stage set is very expensive, which is why EU tour shows are usually a bit bigger than the abroad one. I would like to have the opportunity to just head out to a concert or several in a row, instead of what I need to do now and plan months ahead, save up a ton on money and hours of travel time. Although I like it and makes the experience even bigger, but sometimes not all shows are at a convenient time for me, because I can’t travel in that time period.
  • The bad economy back home
    If you follow the news of Suriname you will understand that the economy is bad at the moment. Like seriously bad. And although I don’t have a horrible paying job, I will not be able to afford my own place or even a new car any time soon. I see more and more people leaving for this reason and I think I seriously must do the same to survive.
  • My freelance business works better here
    I don’t really like working freelance for people back home. This is not a pride thing, this is a money thing. People don’t pay or don’t like to pay. At the moment I have 2 pending payments and I am sick of waiting. If I deliver something for you, it’s your job to deliver the funds. And these aren’t even big amounts. I am seriously not even charging what I should and want, but I try to compromise. But in this way, having to constantly ask when I am getting paid, I cannot do it. However when I have jobs here, we make clear agreements and I get paid just like we discussed. Everyone is happy.
  • Happiness
    As I already said, this place feels like home and it makes me happy.
    I cannot wait to find my own place to live, have a job I love, be with someone I love, walk amongst the cold weather (call me crazy) and just simply be happy.
Clay's Personal

Sober Birthday

Posted on February 2, 2016

By Clayton

bday2016

Yesterday was my 28th birthday… 2 more years, before I turn the big three oh…
Yay, for getting old! *insert sarcastic emoji here*

I had a very subtle… read boring…. Okay really read, sober… birthday.
This was the first in 4 years.
Probably, because it was a Monday, and also my friends are either on vacation or have moved away.

The only “celebratory” thing I had yesterday, was a cake for my colleagues, which I didn’t even by myself. Other than that, it was a normal work day for me. My older brother did come over and I was received a new bracelet, which I looooove! 😀 Thank you.

Also thanks to those that wished me a happy birthday on my various social media account, or those whom texted and called.

I think I will actually have a real birthday celebration when I’m 30… either that or I will be crying in my bathroom with a bottle of red wine, regretting half of my life… lol. Joking.

2016-02-01-16

Clay's Personal

Drone Attacks

Posted on December 7, 2015

By Clayton

drone-attacks

After having worked for approximately 14 hours a day for almost 2 weeks straight, I felt the need for a well-deserved drink on Saturday. I texted Dominique if she wanted to join me after I had gotten home and watched an episode of American Horror Story. A little after 11.00pm I picked her up and we drove to the city center. Since all stores were closed already and we wanted to buy a few things we were heading to the busiest tank station in Paramaribo – if you live here, you’ll probably know which one I am talking about.

There was some sort of street party going on in the center of city’s night life and the streets were quite jammed. I had to drive very slow-paced and noticed a drone flying nearby. As I was almost underneath the drone, Doki looked up at the drone and said: “Look at that drone… I hope it falls!”

3 seconds later….

*loud-crash-scream-break*
THE DRONE FELL ON THE CAR!!!

(more…)

Clay's Personal

Rest In Peace Great-Grandmother

Posted on May 23, 2015

By Clayton

I just came back from the funeral of my great-grandmother, whom had lived until the age of 108.
She was my father’s grandmother and they shared a birthday (February 12). She was also the mother of my own grandmother who died in 2011.

108 years has been a very long time to live. She was the living proof that you can do whatever you want as long as it makes you happy and you hurt no one you can live a long and happy life.

5 children, 22 grandchildren, 61 great-grandchildren and 20 great-great-grandchildren (and a few on the way). She always wanted extra sugar in her tea, never ate her vegetables, always was generous and friendly, wasn’t sick and walked until her last days.

Rest in peace Oma Wiesje

Helena Etwiesje Anietje Donk

Born: Februari 12, 1907
Died: May 16, 2015
Burried: May 23, 2015

Nerd Herd

Back the F up!!!

Posted on March 8, 2015

By Clayton

Everyone working in the IT knows that the most number one rule is to always create a backup before making any changes. This is not only something you should do when working in the IT, but be sure to do this with any digital form of data that you own. Trust me. Do this or else you will be sorry!

Frau ärgert sich über ComputerAfter 2 of my external hard drives crashed within 1.5 years I’ve learned the hard way what it is like to lose everything you’ve worked on so hard. It doesn’t matter if it’s your school essays, your precious vacation pictures or your favorite music, losing something hurts. So after having experienced that I basically back up everything I own digitally on more than one device. I think I have online backups, an external hard drive, my laptop’s regular hard drive and also everything burned on plain ol’ DVD’s. You can never have too many backups.

However…. No matter how precautions you are, you sometimes still slip up.

Let me tell you the story of how I lost a client of mine 2 months (or more) of hard work, with a simple click, which could have been prevented if I had made a backup.

For the past few months I have been working on revamping the website of a friend. It has been basically done for months now, just a few minor adjustments and it is ready to go live. The biggest task of this website that was holding up the Go-live date was the huge amount of pictures that needed to be uploaded. Since that part was up to my friend, I made sure I made the website ready so he could work in his own spare time and I simply would wait for his confirmation that he was finished and that the site was ready to go live.

Well that date was scheduled for today. Today I was supposed to the switch from the old site to the new one. And in the morning fix the broken links and make sure that everything was ready.
However yesterday as I was making some final adjustments to the website, I decided to also clean up some user accounts that are no longer needed when the website goes live. As I wanted to delete the user account of a freelancer whom I had hired to help me out with a huge amount of work, I realized too late what the system meant when it asked: “Do you want to delete the folder that user has worked in”.

I clicked on the check mark and clicked on delete.
As I clicked on delete I thought… wait, do they mean…. SHIT…. Noooooooooo!!!!

Those were the thoughts swirling through my head. Sadly, this action was irreversible.
I did manage to download the database that this site is linked to and was able to recreate the structure of the website images folder, but the actual images that are stored on the server were all gone.

I first tried to get some help with the help desk of the web host. They made it clear that it was impossible for me to get the files back. The only way they could do this was to do a disaster recovery, but they charge a fee of $150. I was of course not pleased by this and also asked what other options I have. They said I should make sure to do a backup on the site.

DisasterRecoveryPlan

Yes, DUH. I could have figured that one out myself. I asked where the auto backup option was for the server, because there is a notification saying that this is not enabled. Of course they were not able to do this for me and each time I want to do something I need to backup. Well thanks for nothing.

I had no other choice than to tell the bad news to my friend, who happens to be in the role of client at this point. How do you tell someone that you’ve just lost 2 months of hard work that someone has done? Of course he was not pleased I cannot express how sorry felt and angry I was with myself. I cannot stand the feeling of defeat and don’t like to let people down.

Certainly not, because I didn’t think through what the effects of my actions would have been. And all of this could have been prevented if I had simply thought about creating a backup, before doing any other changes.

So readers please remember to always PRESS THE FUCKING BACKUP BUTTON!!!

backup-button

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