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And my photo face.

Just like almost everybody I don't like it when my picture is taken. No wonder I am more often behind than in front of the camera.

I was tagged by Jana and was not into publishing 16 things about me on Flickr because really thing some things are too personal. I am very open and open-minded. But then Saskia tagged me too. And I really can't stand that presure!!!!!! LOL

So here we go.

1
I have Spina bifida. It is both a blessing and a curse. The handicap means that some muscles in my legs and hips are paralyzed. I can walk but slower than most people and I am much sooner tired than other people. And there are some other inconveniences.

2
I live in a very small one room apartment of about 50 square meters. So my kitchen, livingroom and bed are in one space. Besides that I have a small bathroom and a hall. I would love to get something bigger but it is very expensive and hard to find. Besides that my apartment is very close to a shopping mall and that is very convenient. So I don't have to walk long distances to do my shopping.

3
I have one sister. She is 2.5 years younger than me. And we used to be best friends and always stood up for each other. Unfortunately we don't see each other often enough because we are both very busy. Tomorrow I will meet her again at my dad's place for christmas.

4
Since my parents divorced 5 years ago it is hard to do family things. I don't celebrate my birthday anymore because my dad does not want to meet my mom anymore. And it is difficult to arrange that they don't visit at the same time during my birthday. Both my parents are in a new relationship now. But that is not the same as it used to be.

5
Photography is both my hobby and my job. I work for the Dutch National Museum of Natural History in Leiden as a photographer. 10 Years ago I started working there as a collection manager which was mainly the registration of the collection. Three years ago this changed and I started doing a little photography for the museum. And now it is full-time photography. Next year a book about fossils will be published that has my photos in it. And I am very proud of that.

6
I love working with and being around women. It is much easier for me to be friends with them too than it is to be friends with men.
7
Pfff... I came to ten earlier. But now it is hard to think of 8 things. HELP!
But number 7 is another passion of mine. Cooking. I love to cook and enjoy cooking nice food just for myself Some people call me crazy that I do this all just for myself. But I love it. My inspiration comes from cooking books, restaurants I visit, TV shows about cooking and the countries that I visit. Two years ago in Rio de Janeiro I bought a really big cooking book with Brazilian recipes. Unfortunately I only know a few words in Portuguese. So it is a bit difficult to work with. But I can look at the pictures!


8
In number 1 I said my handicap is a blessing and a curse. But never explained why it is also a blessing. It is because it made me into what I am now. And I have a few mistakes in my character. But overall people like me for who I am and I am proud of that. It is not easy when you are a kid, and other kids look at you funny, don’t want to play with you and fight you even. Just because you’re different. So I can say I came a long way.

9
My motto is 'I love people' I believe that people are good. But that the circumstances can make them bad. And I trust everybody and think everybody is good until I have seen the opposite.

10
I really hate discrimination and believe all people are equal. No matter what the colour of their skin is, or their religion or sexual preference, or handicap or whatever. Everybody deserves a chance in
life. And I can really get angry when I meet narrrow-minded people that discriminate others.

11
pffffeewww... I made it to 11. Now let me save this and start cooking. All that writing about myself made me hungry! I'll go on when I have had dinner.Well, now it is after dinner I think it is time to tell you about another passion of mine. It is related to my passion for travelling and getting to know different cultures and people. And so I love knowing about the history of people.
In my late teens I became interested in Italian Renaissance, and especially in a person called Leonardo Da Vinci. So, no my nickname on Flickr is not a coincidence.
Da Vinci was a very interesting man, who was a painter, a scientist, a sculptor and an engineer. Since I read a lot about him, I discovered that we have a lot in common in the sense that he had a lot of things that he was interested in. And I always say that my curiosity is my best property and that I like know a little about everything.

12
Christmas. It is Christmas time and I really must say that I HATE Christmas. It is a time where everybody is supposed to be good and visit relatives on days where we have to be nice in a forced way, we eat too much and most of us spend too much money on gifts that are re

XIV - Shoulder Patch

These are father’s recollections from WW II. I have included these here because father died from the mines and I find it ironic and sad that a man who endured so much in a time of war eventually succumbed to an invisible killer in a time of peace.

Father served with the First Special Service Force during World War II and was attached to the American Army for all purposes except pay and record-keeping. As a result of this service in the American Army, father was awarded the U.S. army's Combat Infantry Badge. This was later converted to the Bronze Star but only for those past members of the F.S.S.F. who were still living. Unfortunately father had already passed on by that time.

The Story of Gordon Stanley Hall from Hillsburgh, Ontario During WW II

It will be my purpose here to simply record the stories that father told of his service during WW II. I will record them as they were told to me, and in some cases to others, while in my presence.

Father joined the Canadian Army in March 1941, and went overseas with the 100th A.A. Battalion from Guelph, Ontario. In England, he spent little time with this Battalion since it was over strength, and he was sent to the 2nd Heavy A.A. Battalion. Then in approximately April 1944, he was sent to a reinforcement battalion in Italy, and from here, chose to join the Royal Canadian Regiment. After spending about three months with the R.C.R. in Italy, he volunteered for service with a commando unit named the First Special Service Force or in the Canadian Army, the 1st Special Service Battalion or the 2nd Canadian Parachute Battalion. This combined Canadian-American group is presently better known as The Devil's Brigade because of the movie made about them called "The Devil's Brigade". The F.S.S.F. was disbanded in December 1944, and as a result, father was sent back to the R.C.R., with whom he remained until the end of the war (in Europe) on May 8, 1945.

Before going overseas father was stationed in New Brunswick. He recalled that he once went AWOL, and that after he had been AWOL for some time, he was returning to camp, and met three members of another unit, The Governor General's Horse Guard. Just in conversation, he told them that he had been AWOL, and was on his way back to camp to face the music. Despite the fact that he was returning to camp in any case, the three members of the Governor General's Horse Guard tried to put father under arrest. Father had a rather nasty look on his face when he said that these men did not manage to arrest him, and he subsequently returned to camp under his own steam. In the wee hours of the morning, however, he was awakened and arrested. He was charged with being AWOL, and with resisting arrest, and was not let out of prison until it was time to board the boat for overseas.

This boat was in a convoy, whose commander was Lord Mountbatten. So far as I know, the trip was uneventful. Many years later, however, he did say that he had a girlfriend while in England, and since she worked for the British government, she knew how many ships had been lost in the transatlantic crossing to German submarines. Father allowed that he might not have been in such a hurry to join the army, if he had known this number in advance.

The initials AA, as in the 100th A.A. Battalion and the 2nd Heavy A.A. Battalion, are pronounced Ack Ack and stand for anti-aircraft. Father recalled that he slept for some two years with his boots on because when the air raid sirens started to blow, he had to be up and running immediately. They used radar to shoot at the German aircraft, and father recalled shooting one down--a Heinkel 1-11 with five men on board, and a full load of bombs. He went to see the crash site afterwards, and said that there was a large crater, and that he had never seen so much blood in his life. Apparently there were houses nearby, and the gore was hanging off the houses.

During the very early period of father's stay in England, it was required that all armed forces personnel be prepared to wear a gas mask at any time; so it was necessary to carry a gas mask even when off the base. After some time however, an announcement was made over the radio that this would no longer be required, and accordingly father went to a bar just outside the army base on which he was stationed, without his mask. On exiting the bar however, a senior officer took father to task for not carrying his mask. Father tried to explain that it was on the radio all over England that this was no longer required, but the senior officer would not be deterred saying that it had not been officially announced yet on father's army base. Quite some time passed after this with no repercussions, and father felt that his transgression had been forgotten. The day came, however, when he was marched in to see the Commanding Officer. His explanations were to no avail and he was fined forty dollars.

His army pay was forty dollars per month, but half of this am