Feb
17
Whoops, been a long time since I posted anything here. Time to change that and then hopefully stick to it. Live has been super busy and this site suffered from it.
2020 was terrible for everyone. Lockdowns all around. I need to get my butt back into gear and do more on here. I need to look what I want to do on here and actually do it. 2021 cannot be a waste of a year.
Jul
17
A few weeks ago the divorce was final. Last week I finished up my therapy. A rough 7 years is finally over for me and it’s time for a new beginning.
In hindsight the relation was a terrible one. Basically it was a one-way thing. Giving a lot and not getting much in return. I kinda knew I had to get out of it for a long time but love makes you do dumb things and I staid hoping things would improve. Things didn’t improve and only went from bad to worse. Eventually the bomb burst. I have my role in this. I worked on the issues but looking back I should have gotten the hell out of there much sooner. And the biggest issue is now solved by divorcing it.
The only positive result of that relation is my son and daughter. They make the suffering worth it.
Currently I’m still looking for my own place to live. There is a waiting-list for rental homes. The waiting period is roughly 18 months. For the time being I’m living with my mom again. Not really a big problem but Half my stuff is stored over at my cousin’s place so I don’t always have everything I might need.
The rest, with the exception of a livingroom and tv, has to be bought new (or used) once I get a place to live. I don’t have a bed. I don’t even have sheets for it. I might have a towel or two (that might be in the boxes at my cousin). No pots and pans. I do have plates, forks, knives and spoons. No fridge, freezer or washing-machine
I have no beds for the kids. I do have one toddler bed but by the time I have my own place Tyler will almost be too big for it.
But that’s ok. I have to save up a lot of money so once I do find a place I can get everything I need. I can make the place my own.
I’ll be living close to my friends and family again. I’ll live a little bit further away from my job but that’s ok with me.
One of the downside to the divorce is me having to give up my season ticket to FC Twente. With the kids over every other weekend I’m going to miss a lot of games.
As an alternative I decided to pick up airsoft more intensively. I was a point where it was either quit or keep going and decided to keep going. A few weeks back I had my first event is months and it was great. Got some new gear. Found out a old friend of my brother also plays so another airsoft buddy to go to events with.
One of the greatest joys is my daughter starting to like auto-racing. At this point I’m not certain if she likes it because I like it or if she really does seem to enjoy it. From what I’ve heard she did talk about it all week so hopefully she really likes it (for now).
Reminds me of the days where my dad and I watched F1 or Indycar.
With some luck her brother also starts to enjoy it. It’s a great way to spent the sunday afternoon.
Another good thing I’m doing is going to the gym again. I’m trying 3 times a week but I don’t always manage to do that. It’s not really helping yet but hopefully in time that will come. I’m hoping to gain enough condition I can start running again. I never really disliked it. Just out there, alone, music blasting in your ears. What I disliked was not being able to go for 5km straight without being out of breath.
Jun
21
So I was waiting for this moment a long time. Looking back I should have made the decision much much sooner. Now the day is here I’m not really sure how to express my deep joy without sounding bitter or hateful.
I feel there is no way to express and explain the joy without explaining it more. Yet I do not think a public site is the place for it either.
All I can say is that I’m very happy and if you want to know why you know how to contact me.
For me this is a new beginning. My life belongs to me again. it will take some time to get everything back in order as I’m still waiting for a place of my own.
Also a big thank you to my family and real friends who have been here for me when I needed it and not shut the door when it became a bit difficult.
Apr
29
Tomorrow Hailey will already be 1 year old and the time has flown by like it was yesterday. At first it was getting used to being a dad but slowly I grown into the new role.
Now she’s getting older I’m enjoying it more and more. Now I can play with her. Flying her around the room, holding her upside down and “wrestling” on the couch.
The joy of coming home and seeing her respond to that never grows old. No matter how bad the day was, she can cheer it up.
Slowly she starts to walk. She can walk around the table or couch or while mom or dad is holding her hands. Its getting better every day. Soon she will be able to walk on her own. That will mean more work for mom and dad as we have to run after her.
Talking also starts. Words like mama (mom in Dutch) or papa (dad in Dutch). She also tries to tell us what she wants by pointing and saying “Die” (that in Dutch, pronounced “dee”). Most of the times she points in a general direction making it hard for us to get the right item. She cannot say yes or no yet so if we think we have the right item she cannot confirm it yet. Leading to frustration for her because stupid daddy cannot pick up the right item.
She also loves music, just like her dad. Almost any song is good enough. When her tune comes on she starts to dance. Hopefully she’s into the same music as dad once she’s older so we can go to shows together.
Hailey is now slowly waking up so I say goodbye for now because I have to get her out of bed. Tomorrow around this time the room will be decorated and she will get her first presents, her grandparents will come over and give her more presents. On Saturday we will celebrate it the rest of the family and friends and she will get even more presents.
Jan
3
Happy new year everyone.
A few days late but who cares. I was working on another review but it didn’t get done yet. I wanted to review the original Transformers cartoon season 1 but by now I’m watching season 3 so I might have to rewrite it to make it a review of the entire series including the 1986 movie.
So what will 2015 bring us? In march I will become 35 already. In April Hailey will be 1 year old.
In December the new Star Wars movie will be out but also The Avengers: Age of Ultron, the next James Bond movie, Spectre, Jurasic world, Max Max: Fury Road and Terminator Genisys will be released during the year.
While looking at the list of new movies I noticed a bunch of crap movies as well like 50 shades of grey or Furious 7. Seriously, why waste time and money on that?
In february part 2 of season 5 of the Walking dead will start. Right now this is the only series I take time for to sit down and watch every monday. In october season 6 will start.
There are several series I want and need to watch but don’t really have time for it. I should be ashamed that I haven’t started Breaking Bad or that I only watched season 1 of Game of Thrones. I still have a few seasons of Dexter that need to be watched and I hear Homeland is good as well. Fox Netherlands is now showing Vikings. This also looks good but again time is the issue here.
What will happen in the music industry is pretty much beyond me. If someone I care about releases a new album I’ll notice it on facebook or spotify. Twin Forks did announce on facebook that there will be new tours and new music. If the new album is as good as their last one I can recommend it. I hope that if they come to the Netherlands I can get tickets.
What will be released in the gaming industry is also something I don’t really have time for anymore with Hailey around. Besides that, most games will be released for either the Playstation 4. Xbox One or PC. With an older PC and a Xbox 360 I probably won’t be able to play them anyways.
One game I do hope will get announced is Fallout 4. The last game, Fallout New Vegas, was released in 2010. Fallout 3 was released in 2008. So we’re due for a new game.
But when it gets announced it probably will take another year before it gets released….for Playstation 4, Xbox One and PC.
I’m also eying new airsoft gear. The replica itself isn’t that expensive but the clothing I would like is. The kit I selected was around 330 British pounds. I had a few items on that list that where pure for the looks and not necessary but still the entire kit is expensive.
Before I buy this kit I first must have some luck in the lottery.
One of the things I’d like to do is be more active. I’d like to run at least 5 kilometers 3 times a week. To reach that goal I should start running in the first place. Late 2013 and early 2014 I ran quite a lot. I didn’t run 5km yet but I was running. Sadly several injuries hindered me from reaching that goal and eventually I completely stopped running.
But first on my list is finishing the review of the Transformers series. Hopefully it will take me days instead of weeks. But first I have to finish season 3 and 4. So goodbye for now. My 2 girls are in bed now so I have a date with the DVD-player.
Nov
27
Regrets, we all have them. Not telling that one girl you like her, not getting that one thing you wanted or getting it while not really having the money for it. Maybe not saying that one line during an argument. Or going or not going to this party or concert. Or an ugly and/or misspelled tattoo.
Having regrets isn’t bad. It’s part of your live. I too did not tell that one girl I liked her but that’s ok. That was years ago and I now have a beautiful wife and we have a beautiful daughter.
I too did buy something I couldn’t really afford at the time and I skipped a concert or 2 because of various reasons. But in the end things turned out fine and the world didn’t end. I also have tattoos but the only regret is I don’t have the money to get more.
Lately there is one thing that I start to regret. As a kid there where 2 toys I spent most of my days with. One was Lego. Me and my brother made amazing things. We build entire farms with tractors and machinery. I made the entire Formula 1 grids. Teams, drivers and pitcrew. Of course almost every start involved crashes and I had to rebuild several cars before “the next race”.
The other toy was G.I. Joe. A lot more expensive than Lego and you cannot build your own toys. But you could recreate the cartoon or create your own adventures. Or if you was, like me you created adventures based on the tv show Tour of Duty.
Over the years I collected quite a collection. Today I cannot exactly remember which action figure or vehicle I had or a friend of mine had but I do know I had quite a few.
I always wanted the Skystriker XP14F based on the Grumman F14 Tomcat, made famous in the movie Top Gun, but sadly I never had the money for it.
Skystriker XP14F
When I did have money it was replaced by the Conquest X-30 which was loosely based on the Grumman X-29 prototype.
Conquest X-30
Some of my favorite action figures where the following:
Muskrat
and
Alley Viper
They raced around my bedroom on the Tiger Paw quad.
Tiger Paw
I spend countless hours with these and my Lego’s and then came the day I stopped playing with it. First it was collecting dust and then me and my mom decided to clean up my room and put away all the toys I stopped playing with.
My mom “confiscated” the Lego’s. One they she would have grandchildren and they can play with it she said. And right she was. Hailey is still too young for it but in a few years she will build things and spend countless hours with it.
But my GI Joe’s was a different story. I was a big boy now and I didn’t play with GI Joe’s anymore. I grabbed a garbage bag and threw them all away. All of them. Including every vehicle I had. My mom asked me if I was sure and I was…. at the time.
Forward ~20 years and now I regret that decision. Not that I want to play with them today but I now realize I threw away a part of my youth. I can go on eBay and get them all again but it’s not my GI Joe. My GI Joe’s ended up in a garbage incinerator. Buying them again means I’m getting someone else’s memories.
I don’t blame my mom for not stopping me back then, it was my decision. However if Hailey and/or her future brother or sister wants to throw out toys they stopped playing with I might decide differently for them so that 20 years later they don’t have to regret their decision.
PS: If one of my friends read this I’m sure he’s cringing right now. I think he’s more a Transformers guy but still… You know who you are 😉
Nov
9
so after some new problems with my site my host moved me to a new server. This resulted in being offline almost the entire Saturday. It works again and hopefully all problems are now fixed. Let’s wait and see.
Oct
25
So Hailey is now almost 6 months old. Time for another photoshoot by Sander van Tuijl.
As expected, Sander delivered a wonderful job.
If you need a good photographer for good pricing I strongly recommend Sander. So far he has done several bellyshoots, our wedding, familyshoot (de Wals side) and multiple shoots of Hailey. Every time it was great.
Sep
5
One of the things I wanted to buy for airsoft where magpulls. A piece of rubber to fit around the bottom end of your magazine so it’s easier to pull it out of your magazine pouch. However these cost €2,50 to €2,80 a piece. With 6 magazines thats around €15 euros. There had to be a cheaper way.
Rubber magpulls
I searched the internet high and low and found one but it didn’t have a proper howto. It only showed the end result. But I now had a general idea on how to make my own magpulls.
my gunbag came with straps so you could wear it as a backpack but I have no intention to do so. These would work for straps. Now I needed a role of tape and I was set to be creative.
the materials needed
Needed are: scissors, straps, tape and your magazines.
After a few failed attempts I came up with the following and for now it seems to work wonderful.
While there isn’t much that could happen I would like to remind you that beyond this point everything is at your own risk and I cannot be held responsible for any damage to you or your magazines.
tape up the end
Tape up one end of the strap. Wrap the tape around it 2 or 3 times and then rub the tape so it sticks to the strap even better.
Then hold the taped end on your magazine, make the desired size of your magpull. Mark where the straps starts on the other side of the magazine. I used my finger.
Place this end on the tape and use your scissors to cut off the strap. Make sure it’s the side that’s too much and not the side that goes to the already taped up end. Then wrap the tape round the second end just like you did with the first end.
The result will be like the image below.
Both ends taped up
Next we take one end of the taped strap and place it on the tape as on the picture below
place the end of your magpull on the tape
Place this on the magazine as seen below.
place the tape with the magpull on the magazine
Now we’re going to hold the other end as seen below.
hold the other end in place before you tape up the entire magazine
Carefully wrap the tape around the magazine so that both ends are now taped to the magazine. Wrap the tape 2 or 3 times and then cut it and rub it so it sticks better to your magazine.
end result
And there you have your homemade magpull. It might not look like it’s rubber counterpart but this has a nice field-mod look to it.
If you have high cap magazines make sure the loop is big enough for you to wind the wheel. If you have a high cap flash mag, make sure you have enough room to open the bottom and pull the cord.
For me this seems to work. I applied quite some force to it and it didn’t came loose. If you try you probably will pull the strap out but in most cases the magazine will exit your pouch before that happens.
make sure you leave enough room if you have high caps.
Sep
4
So if you have been following me on facebook you might have noticed I’ve been liking and commenting a lot of things related to airsoft.
If you don’t know what airsoft is follow this link.
After a few tries with borrowed or rented equipment I decided this would be my new hobby and I started collecting my gear and joining a local airsoft team called Dutch Airsoft Resistance. The last item on the list was my own replica. August 16th I finally ordered one from Gunfire but the delivery took some time. But today it finally arrived.
The replica is from G&G Armaments. The model is CM16 Carbine in Desert Tan.
How the package arrived
Real life intervened but after preparing and eating dinner it was time to open the package.
Ready to cut the plastic wrapping
After the plastic wrapping was gone the box was revealed.
The box
Let’s open the box.
The opened box showing the included items
You see the airsoft replica based on the Colt M4A1, a 450 round high cap magazine, 1000 BB’s (Sadly not Biodegradable so I cannot use them) and a one point sling mount (bought separately because all reviews said the replica didn’t have one but this one did).
Also, slightly hidden in the box is a cleaning rod.
The replica with it’s magazine.
This is what the replica looks like with the standard magazine. If you find me on the fields some day you most likely will not see me use that particular magazine. I also have 5 mid cap magazine’s that hold 120 rounds each. That’s a lot less compared to the 450 but there are 3 reasons for that.
1: High caps need to be found up. There is a wheel on the bottom and every so many rounds you have to wind the magazine.
2: High caps have a rattle because all the BB’s are basically in 1 big reservoir.
3: With only 120 rounds you have to change mags more often (is more realistic) and with less rounds you pay more attention to where you fire and thus less “spray and pray”.
I will however take this one with me on the field but only for backup if the 5 mid caps are all empty and I haven’t had time to fill them up again.
the replica with the mid cap magazine
So this is what the replica looks like with the mid cap magazine.
The replica in the gunbag
Last picture of the day. Here the gun is in the gunbag. Needed ntfor transportation.
I cannot wait to actually fire the rifle. I did a few dry fires (without a magazine and thus no BB’s) and it sounded good but I have no idea how hard the replica fires.
Sunday September 14th I probably will go to D.A.R.’s training field to test it. I will report back how it shoots.
If you’re interested in playing airsoft yourself, at least 18 years old and are from the Netherlands contact D.A.R. for an introduction skirm or find a team near you. Another option is going to a field that has rental kits (Bunker Hill for example). You can try airsoft 6 times but after that you need a permit which the NABV can give you.
For anyone outside of the Netherlands, please look into your local rules for airsoft.
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