Behind the scenes I’ve been working on a number of posts about what’s been going on and what I’ve been up to these past weeks and months. It’s been a whirlwind of motion, a cacophony of change, some tough moments scattered among positive and uplifting ones, along with the more mundane. (Is there ever a […]
Archive for the ‘Change’ Category
Shared Transitions
Posted in Blogging, Change, Emotional Resilience, Expat Transitions & Change, September 11th, Writing, tagged bonds, change, colleagues, destruction, friends, healing, loss, moving, pain, people, reflection, remembrance, September 11th, terror, transitions, writing on September 11, 2013 | 2 Comments »
Fijne Koninginnedag
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Holidays, Netherlands, tagged abdication, boat regattas, celebration, ceremonies, concerts, coronation, Dutch, Dutch monarchy, King Willem-Alexander, Koninginnedag, music festivals, national yard sale, Netherlands, parties, Prince Willem-Alexander, Queen Beatrix, royal, services, throne on April 30, 2013 | 5 Comments »
Today was Queen’s Day, the biggest national holiday in the Netherlands. They’ve been celebrating the monarch’s birthday since the late 19th century, and this marks the fourth Koninginnedag festivities we’ve observed. I mentioned in another post that it’s a lot like a mix of New Year’s Eve, Fourth of July and Mardi Gras (with more […]
Almost Friends
Posted in Albert Heijn, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Netherlands, Travel, United States, Writing, tagged attention, chatting, conversation, despair, dinner, expat, expat life, family, family crises, focus, friends, friendship, grief, loneliness, marriage, medical problems, missed signals, neighborhood, neighbors, newly arrived, pain, promise of friendship, separation, Southeast Asia, The Hague, The Netherlands, time, travelling, trips, welcome on February 7, 2013 | 14 Comments »
I first met Tamara 14 months ago on the sidewalk in front of our neighbor’s house. It was a cold, late Sunday afternoon in December, the air heavy with moisture off the frigid North Sea. The weak sun had managed to emerge briefly from behind large swaths of gun metal gray clouds. Husband and I had just left the house to […]
3 Cs of Change
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Holidays, Light Bulb Moments, tagged 2013, blogging, centering, change, community, contemplation, creativity, emotional resilience, gratitude, Happy New Year, New Year's Eve, reflection, resolutions, writing on January 1, 2013 | 24 Comments »
I know that everyone is either partying hard, out and about and thus not reading blog posts, or already in bed. I’m not one to judge, so whatever floats your boat… Or you’ve been busy and only now are finding your way to reading this. So I’m going to keep it short and sweet. When you […]
Holiday Intermezzo
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Holidays, Travel, United States, tagged American football, away from home, bowl games, bowling, Christmas, Christmas Eve, circumstances, creativity, decorations, family, holiday season, holidays, innovation, ornaments, panache, stripped down version, togetherness, travel, US on December 31, 2012 | 8 Comments »
It’s been quite a holiday season this year, in oh so many ways. Nothing about it has been ‘normal’ or ‘same old, same old’ or even vaguely familiar. Given a whole range of circumstances, some of which will go unmentioned out of respect for others’ privacy and most well beyond our control, my family has found itself […]
T is for Thoughtful
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Expats A to Z, Repatriation, Third Culture Kids (TCKs), Expat Teens, Travel, tagged aware, caring, change, considerate, cross-cultural, culture shock, cultures, definitions, expat, expat transitions, expatriate, Expats A to Z, fits us to a T, global living, heedful, helping others along the way, intercultural, kind, living abroad, meanings, meditative, nomadic life, reasoned, reflective, Repatriation, TCKs, Third Culture Kids, thoughtful, traveling on December 4, 2012 | 12 Comments »
Earlier this year I introduced Expats A to Z, a new series of posts about the little things that can make a difference in how we approach some of the challenges and experiences of expat life. I’m talking about those qualities and traits that we can nurture within us not only to simply survive but thrive […]
Autumn = Change
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Catarina Chronicles, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Holidays, Netherlands, United States, Writing, tagged Americans, autumn, Autumn Equals Change, blogging, Catarina, change, costumes, creativity, culture, decisions, different, dressed up, Dutchies, Expat Focus, expat life, faces painted, fairies, favorite season, fresh, ghost, ghouls, goblins, Halloween, holidays, internationals, Little Red Riding Hood, magical, makeup, Nederland, Netherlands, new, seasons, The Hague, trick-or-treaters, United States, witches, writing, zombies on November 1, 2012 | 4 Comments »
Yesterday was Halloween, and it was a smashing one indeed. It began dry and sunny (two big pluses during autumn here) and remained so throughout the day; Halloween night was, well, amazing. Halloween is HUGE in the United States, and every year, more and more Dutchies and other internationals join Americans in celebrating this fun-filled holiday. Cross-culturalism at its […]