This year began very bad in Belgium. Only in May the first rays of sun broke their way through the clouds. And that's when in Belgium the Barbecue season begins. We can classify this food season just as there are the mussels season, the asparagus season, the strawberry season etcetera. [click on the food for some delicious recipes!]
This weekend we set off one of my favorite seasons at the quays in Antwerp. It's a tradition here to buy a small, throw-away barbecue and meet with friends at the banks of the Scheldt.
(the one and only correct) recipe = good weather, some friends, music, a blanket, drinks and food!
I saw this bed a while ago in a magazine and just loved it. It's a simple idea with a simple form and still it's very original, thanks to designers Gaston Zahr and Merav Eitan.
It really invites you to plunge in this bird's nest and stay there all day or all night!
Want to have it? Visit www.oge-group.com
Every morning I get up around 6h30 and drive to my job. That's a 30 to 50 minutes drive so in the meanwhile I listen to the radio. I switch in between Studio Brussel and Q-music but nowadays I tend to listen more to the talkative hosts from Q-music.
Today they started with "The experiment"
Concept: 2 male dj's and 1 female dj are locked up in a small studio for an undefined period and receive news facts from which they don't know whether they are true or not. So each morning and each evening they get 4 questions and by answering them correctly, they can get out of the experiment. Since they are journalists, they're kind of addicted to newspapers, internet etc. so living without any form of communication will be really hard for them! >> funny :-)
If you want to take a look at them, do it here (-this show is in Dutch-)
There's no question about it, J.Lo is smoking hot at her 43. She's back after her divorce from Marc Anthony almost a year ago and she still looks, sings and moves amazing.
In this particular video, released on the 3rd of May, we can spot a lot of trends.
1) J.Lo. This divorced mom of 2 kids still looks stunning in her forties, is very fashionable and has a 18-year younger boyfriend Casper with whom she pretends to be very much in love (read how she defends their age difference here and watch them dance way too sexy together here).
& = ??
But, uhm, new stepdad? I bet Max and Emme won't like hime so much...
2) Combining English and Spanish is a guaranteed success! Take an international superstar as Jennifer Lopez, add two of Latin America's most popular "reggaetoneros" and you get a hit-song.
3) Our way of watching TV has changed in the last few years. TV as we know it today is "digital". This means: tape it all, don't miss a thing and skip the ads. Of course this is great for the viewer, you can now watch your favorite program without being disturbed by some annoying detergent ad.
But this is of course not so good for the detergent's business so billion dollar companies need to be creative in other ways. Product placement is now with a new focus is on films and videoclips. If you watch this video closely you will spot the next brands:
00:15 Blackberry
00:26 Blackberry
00:36 Rémy Martin Champagne
00:47 Blackberry
01:38 Rexona
01:42 Rexona
01:44 Rexona
01:53 Nike
02:14 Pepsi
02:29 Pepsi
04:03 Rexona
04:07 Rexona
04:15 Rexona
04:51 Rexona
I think it's clear who did the most sponsoring in this video...
Sean Paul is also very good at choosing the sponsors in his video, especially in the (female unfriendly) video of She doesn't mind where he gets very clear shots of his favorite drink and synthetic oil (wtf).
I must admit that the collection is beautiful and so is the model. But there's one remarkable feature: the tan.
In general, Western people want to get tanned. People with a darker skin are considered to be more attractive.Of course this can lead to skin cancer and has even created a disease called tanorexia. The word itself says it all: people get addicted to the sun and their skin gets a cardboard texture.
Not so beautiful.
One of the best (or worst) examples is Donatella Versace:
But this isn't everybody's ideal of beauty.
In Asia people prefer a bright skin.
I bet they have less skin problems!
My point is, you can not change beauty ideals in a day, but you must not exaggerate in applying them!
This video came out last month (not so trendy anymore - apologies for that)
This video has 32 million views on Youtube.
This video is the second most viewed video on Youtube.
This video is hilarious.
It's sad to say but over the years even ear plugs became a trend.
Loud music can cause tinnitus (not cool).
Even superstars are not spared from this disease.
This week Chris Martin from Coldplay admitted he suffers from hearing problems (read the article here).
So please people, protect your ears andyou protect yourself.
You can buy them at your local supermarket, drug store or, if you want a fancier version, check out the next websites:
Omerica Organic custom made ear plugs and a choice out of more than 50 types
Earplugs China do you want a big choice, big quantities and little money, it's China baby!
Earplugs all brands select your language and select earplugs. This is for people who know exactly what kind of earplugs they need. There's so much choice!
Make it cool and comfortable to wear ear plugs!
And if you dislike it, please don't stand too close to speakers!
So here's the world.
This map is actually in my room. I bought it one time in Paris in a bookstore (not a romantic one like you imagine now when you say "a bookstore in Paris") next to the university where I've studied for a semester.
Anyways, I thought it would be a nice idea to mark all the places/countries I've visited in my life.
Green is for "places I've lived" and pink is "places I've visited".
It is a nice way of decorating a room and being remembered daily of your previous trips.
