Long time no see

Yeah, I haven't been posting much lately... I have so much I want to do, so much I need to do and even more I have to do... Somehow that ends up in me doing nothing. I'll give you a little update though...

My health still bothers me. As I wrote before, I'm caught between happy feelings (yay, nothing's wrong) and discomfort. I don't feel good, on the contrary. I'm not sick, it's hard to describe. On top of the physical problems  I'm also struggling mentally. Life isn't easy at the moment. I won't tire you with the details, but it's more survival than life... Bleh, enough of that negativity.

From Ascension Day until the Sunday thereafter my coven was invited to the Greencraft Coven Convention in Castle De Berckt in Baarlo, Netherlands. Greencraft is an Alexandrian based Wiccan Tadition, founded by Hera and Arghuicha (read more on the Greencraft website).We had wonderful days filled with workshops, rituals, meetings and social interaction. The weather was very good, although a bit too sunny and warm to my liking. A lot could be done outside. Because the tradition celebrated its 20th anniversary the covens had prepared a beautiful and very special ritual to honour and thank Hera and Arghuicha. We were very honoured to be able to take part in this.

We are busy with Ron's business called Van Leeuwen Auto Advies (Van Leeuwen Car Advice) or VLAA. The website is online: www.vlaa.nl. The colours we are using come from Van Swieten, the transport company for which Ron's father worked and Ron has fond memories of. We have done a lot of work these last weeks/months. The logo, business cards, etc. are ready too. The car will get some advertisement next week. Let the customers come! :-)

Last weekend Ron and I went to a little folk festival called Teylinger Fest. It was organized for the first time this year, but hopefully it won't be the last! There were folk bands playing all day in the Ruin of Teylingen. On the fields around it were market stalls and entertainment. You can see our pictures in my Facebook album "Teylinger Fest 2011" (no need for a FB account to watch).

That's it for now. I'll try to post more regularly!

A little update

I've been wanting to write a post almost every day in the last two weeks, but somehow every time something got in the way. A little update...

The finances for Ron's business are finally done. The normal banks weren't interested, didn't even take a look at the businessplan. We don't have personal money to invest, so the verdict was an established fact: not interested. We didn't give up and turned to Qredits, the only nationwide operating microfinance institution in The Netherlands. We got a visit of one of their business advisors and he liked the idea and plans. Finally, after almost a year of pursuing this goal, the business can really start.
Sounds good, huh? It is, really! But from that moment on eveything seemed to be doomed. Whatever we did, it all backfired. Whatever we started went wrong. It would be too much to spell it all out, but man... it was exhausting and undermining our motivation. But again... we won't give up! Things can only get better... Luctor et Emergo! ;-)

I haven't been feeling very well the past weeks. Something went wrong with my heart and blood pressure medication (my fault). Last week after I went countrydancing I collapsed at home. My heart rate and blood pressure were skyhigh. I really felt very bad. My medication is okay again, but still my heart is racing regularly and my blood pressure is too high even in rest. I'll have to make a doctor's appointment next week. Perhaps my medications have to be adapted; they all interact. We'll see.

Last saturday we went to the Elf Fantasy Fair in Haarzuilens, a festival for fantasylovers, pagans, live action role play (larp), re-enactment, etc. with great music, stands, workshops, lectures and more on the grounds of Castle De Haar. We had a great time! You can see our pictures in my Picasa webalbum:

Elf Fantasy Fair

Busy(ness)

The last months have been tough. Ron officially lost his job on May 1st. We knew that beforehand, so we acted early to get all the paperwork and applications done in time. To cut a long story short: we did the right thing but the social security authority made a mess of it and sent us from pillar to post. I'll spare you the details, but it was very frustrating. We've had quite some weeks... Both depressed and desperate, but somewhere deep within determined to overcome this. And it looks like we are finally on a winning streak. We aren't there yet, not by a long shot, but I'm moderately positive.

Despite his qualifications and experience it isn't easy for Ron to find another job, because he is too old at 45. Unbelievable, isn't it? He had to think about what he would want to do first. That took a while to figure out. Some time ago we talked with my brother and he suggested that Ron would start his own business. Ron worked out the idea and we did some research. The social security authority agrees the plan is good enough to give it a try! So now we are at the beginning of a new path. It will take time to bring it about, but that's okay. At least we can work towards a positive future again!