About Rien Poortvliet

Yes, another great artist!
Marinus (Rien) Harm Poortvliet was born on August 7th 1932 in Schiedam, The Netherlands, as the oldest of four sons of the plasterer Zacharias Poortvliet and Cornelia Hermina de Boer.

Rien Poortvliet married Cornelia (Corrie) Bouman on May 23, 1956. They had met at college in Schiedam. Rien and Corrie got two sons, Harm en Tok and lived in Schiedam.

His talent manifested itself at an early age, but his parents were set against Rien becoming an artist. After attending school, he became the youngest co-worker at an advertising bureau, where he could vent some of his artistic talents.

After having served his time at the Royal Navy in 1954, he found a job as an illustrator at Lintas, the advertisement bureau from Unilever.

Since the late fifties, Rien did illustrations, in his spare time, for several publishers. Most of his work was for children's literature. Rien was a fervent lover of nature and hunter and much of his work also was published in hunting books. In the late sixties, Rien decided to take the plunge and became a full time book illustrator. In 1969 he and his family moved to Soestduinen, the Netherlands.

Due to lack of work and having to support his family, Rien published his first book in 1972. In 1976 Poortvliet and his colleague Wil Huygen, published the first book about a subject that would give them international fame: Gnomes.

His work made him financial independent and Rien could do whatever he liked. In 1979 the family moved to Soest, to a house with a better work shop for Rien.

Rien Poortvliet died of bone cancer on September 15, 1995 at Soest, at the age of 63.

Reliable Hosting

Sometimes I don't really know what is going on with my computer. I have a suspicion that at times our server is overloaded and everyone is on there at the same time. That takes the use of the Internet to such an extremely slow pace, it is frustration at it's best.

That is one of the reasons why TFF Hosting is so appealing to me. They offer super fast cPanel hosting, with extremely fast support. They even guarantee their server will not be overcrowded, since their web hosting packages are located at extremely fast servers at a data center in Chicago IL. That is how they keep things fast. I sure could use that!

I looked at their prices for hosting packages, and just couldn't believe it. The registration prices as low as $6.99. There are several options, so you can pick the one that suits your needs best. Every package comes with PHP, MYSQL, CGI,POP E-mail, SSI, Front page, Cron, Curl- Web mail, Mail Forwarding and more. All featuring the latest cPanel of course. On top of that, there is a 24 hour support, no matter what package you decide to go with.

TFF Hosting must be one of the most reliable hosting companies I have come across. The cheapest one as well. Not only with their hosting packages, but also with domain registrations. I have seen prices on the web for domain name services, that were totally outrages. That is one of the reasons why I opted out on getting my own domain name. I am reconsidering this though. TFF's domain name services are unbeatable, with an easy to use domain management system. They even offer reseller hosting and domain name reseller plans as well.

If you are tired of paying high server and domain name costs, like me, TFF Hosting is the route to go. They really practice the "Hosting" in their company name!

Procrastination

Some days I just can not seem to get going. No energy, no gumption. Mentally I want to, but physically I don't. What a dilemma, sigh. I resort to coffee to at least try to wake up, haha.

To all of you who know this feeling too well.... Good morning! Welcome to the club. :-)

Why don't we all sit down, take our time and talk about it. That gives me a good reason to justify my procrastination.

More coffee, anyone???!!

A Working System

One of our daughter's friends had a serious obesity problem. He was considering lap-band surgery, to loose weight and improve his health, since nothing else seemed to work.

It would be wise if he went with JourneyLite. Not only does lap-band los angeles
evaluate whether the lap-band system would be right for him, they also would find him an experienced surgeon, help him with insurance approval, and give him an extensive follow-up and aftercare, that would be specifically tailored with his success in mind.

All of this would be a huge weight of his shoulders!

A Degree in Blond

Being blond myself, I can appreciate a good joke at the expense of blonds. I sympathise and empathise though, since I have experiences some blond moments myself. It may be a bit embarrassing when it happens, but they make for a good laugh afterwards.

I can't help it, I think the jokes are hilarious.

A married couple were asleep when the phone rang at 2 in the morning.
The very blond wife picked up the phone, listened a moment and said: "How should I know, that's 200 miles from here!" and hung up.
The husband asked: "Who was that?"
The wife answered: "I don't know, some woman wanting to know if the coast is clear."

I honestly don't believe it pertains either to only blonds, or to just women. So, if you would like to share a "blond" moment, I am all ears! :-)

Heavy Metal Toxicity

Did you know that minerals and heavy metals can build up in your body and can cause a lot of health problems? They build up in the arteries and veins and the removal of this heavy metal toxicity takes a specific action called chelation.

Over the last 50 years chelation was administered by IV and took up to 3 hours to complete. An average of 30 sessions to for the chelation to take it's full effect, was quite normal. Not really something to look forward to, huh?!

To know if chelation therapy might be in order, these signs should be good indicators:
When your hands, arms or legs feel cold or "go to sleep" or when your legs ache on short walks. Breathlessness on slight activity, lack of energy, an indication of cardiovascular problems and a decrease of memory.

Nowadays, chelation does not have to be an intensive and painful cure. At Cardio Renew, liquid removal of the heavy metals from the body is offered, which is not only much more convenient and painless, but also very affordable.

This oral chelation provides a fast and high absorption rate, taking immediate effect to cleanse your entire cardiovascular system. This can be of help with a variety of health conditions.

If you want to make sure you may need chelation, ask your doctor for a hair test. That's all it takes and can be the start on the road to a healthier life.

Stamp Away

I sometimes have to send out so many cards or letters, it's not funny anymore. I am mainly thinking about all the Holidays here. First writing the card and the address on the envelope, putting enough postage on it and then a return address label.

That last may seem easy, but let me assure you, it is not. I have a very difficult time to peel those self-adhesive thin labels off, and when I finally do, they stick everywhere and anywhere except on the envelope.

It would be so much easier to have a return address ink stamp. I am seriously considering having one custom made. Most self respecting CEOs and other high placed persons have their own signature stamp. Businesses have personalized stamps with their logo even. Therefor, I don’t consider it a strange thought to have one with your address on it.

What’s even better then the regular stamps with ink pads, is self inking stamps. No hassle with ink pads. Just use it and put it in your pocket. Yes, you read that right. Take it with you on travel, whether that be for business or relaxation.

The choice of ink stamps and accessories is enormous. I can not imagine you couldn't find one for yourself, your company, or your art business.

Frugal

Many jokes go around about people living in countries other than ours. Their typical habits and/or behavior tend to lend themselves for it. The Dutch are known as tradesmen and as being economical, especially when it comes to money (some might even call it stingy, hehe). I guess it's true. I don't pass up a penny on the ground!

My grandfather always used to say: " The money lies in the street. Who can't honor the little, is not worthy of the great", ( free translation ). He would pick up empty bottles laying in the shoulders or bushes and cash them in for the deposit. Every now and then he would go to the dump and go through the trash. He would come back with a load of perfectly good stuff people had thrown away and hold a garage sale. He had a nose for making a quarter out of a dime.

So, how do you know you just passed the home of a Dutchman?
When you see the freshly washed toilet-paper hanging out to dry! :-)

Do you know any jokes about the Dutch? Please share. I think we all appreciate a good laugh!

New Media Expo

If you like to produce high-quality online content, grow a loyal audience, and market or monetize that content in creative ways, then you should attend the 4th Annual New Media Expo 2008!



This convention for bloggers, podcasters, online audio and video creators, is being held at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

They appreciate your attendance. Make sure to register as soon as possible, so you won't miss out on this popular event!

Mortician's Humor

Before you think this is just a morbide post and assumingly an offensive one as well... you are totally wrong! Keep in mind, not all is what it seems.

So, keep on reading before clicking away due to you probably being outraged at the thought of such an inflammatory statement.

Sign in a store window:
'WE WOULD RATHER DO BUSINESS WITH 1000 ALQAEDA TERRORISTS, THAN WITH ONE SINGLE AMERICAN SOLDIER!'

This sign was prominently displayed in the window of a business in Philadelphia . However, we are a society which holds Freedom of Speech as perhaps our greatest liberty.
And after all, it is just a sign.

You may wonder what kind of business would dare to post such a sign.
Answer: A Funeral Home

I am glad you hung in there. When I first started reading this, I almost went through the roof by such a bold and insensitive stand, taken by this store-owner. Reaching the end and gaining knowledge of what it really was about, got me in a stitch. Who said morticians had no sense of humor? :-)

Seriously, I wish there wouldn't have to be any signs like this. It would mean there would be peace, safety and security for every one. For now, I will keep dreaming on.

More Sales With Less Costs

You may be one of the entrepreneurs who has a business online. For you to be able to sell your product, it is inevitable to offer several payment solutions to your customers.

If your clients can not make credit card payments, you may be missing out on some great sales. In case you do offer credit card payment, you may be paying too much for the service you have.

Either way, it is definitely worth to look into a service that focuses on the needs for your business. I would recommend Five Star Payments. Not only do they save you time and money, it may result in a lot more sales as well!