Gay bashing

Amsterdam used to be a tolerant city towards the gay scene, and even embraced it in all it's glory. But what were incidents are culminating into a gulf of gay molesting.
Yesterday it happened in front of my door. I tried to help, but the two youths (Moroccan and Turkish) were so aggressive, in no time one of them hooked me. When I got back on my feet again, the gay neighbour had been attaced with a bicycle chain lock. Blood all over.
So there we went to the hospital, he to be stitched, me to check if I hadn't broken anything. Luckily I didn't but this is how my face looks now.
Job Cohen, I don't want to drink tea with these people. These homophobic cowards deserve to be castrated because they don't deserve their balls. Stop the terror on me and my friends and neighbours.

Update: One of the guys has been caught, the one that hit me is still out there, but the police knows his name, where he lives and where he worked.
To the left: my face two hours after
Beneath that: my face after two days

At the farm

Last week me and farquaad took care of his parent's house and his younger brother.
Horizons all around, lots of weather: sun, rain and wind, a dog, a cat and two horses made it a real nice holiday setting. Friday afternoon the sun shone brilliantly after lots of rain. While I was drawing a little spec appeared on the fence. Then another one and when a swallow flew by to feed the young in the nests, these dots started to scream and yell.
They were young swallow chicks, already being able to fly but too lazy or unexperienced to go hunting for critters themselves. At the end of the day five little furry balls were seated neatly on the fence.
Takkie the dog (real name: Kojak) was hanging lazy in the sun while I was drawing, but later on we made a long walk of two hours. I had to carry her on the last few meters, poor little Takkie...

Jonas the movie

This week I started off a new film project again.
With Erik Rauws, the cameraman of Johan Verberck's A Detective Story, we will shoot the short movie -with the work title Jonas- this summer in both Amsterdam and Nijmegen.
I like this, doing another small movie. This year, I've already been approached for another movie, but unfortunately I couldn't make the time to put in time nor energy, so I gave only a little production advice for the Dutch horror movie Asian Import Ltd. The director Barend de Voogd also used a blog to track the filmprocess. It's fun but also good for the group dynamics, I found out already with the blog Hidde Simons set up for the filmproject Olifant.
One of the reasons I'm looking forward to be producing this new film project is because it's fiction and short. Horror is not my special interest and being on the road with Couscous and Cola wore me out extremely because I couldn't agree with some of the decisions made for me, but which I had to execute. On this film, we're all in for the fun of it, so here we go!

Insight

In the end, it's all about perception. Sometimes it is good to realize how other people see you and experience your behaviour. It could help you really helping others. Plus another example of how warfare these days is becoming less and less governmental propaganda, though they try to limit free information because of security reasons.

I see what you don't see

A very beautiful website for a horrific subject. It's very easy from your lazy chair to sign the petition, to help fill the need for foster parenting is something else.
Still, look at the beautiful designed site, sign up and consider what you can do.

Compa Nansi

The one heritage the slave trade brought to the new world are the stories of Compa Nansi. These fables about spider Anansi originate from Ghana and West-Africa, where they are told unto this day. The slaves couldnt bring anything material during the crossing of the Atlantic'except their languages, knowledge and stories. This way Anansi storeies are now also being told through out the Caribbean.

Me too grew up with the adventures of cunning Anansi, therefore I am very happy that on Saturday the 2nd of june an Anansi storytelling festival is taking place at Imagine IC, organised by Anansi Masters. You can come and tell your own Anansi story or just lay back and listen to some good story tellers.

Next to this story telling festival there is also an exhibition, a theater piece and many movies are to be seen on the website. Amongst others from Ghanean story tellers that tell their version, sometimes even without Anansi himself at all.

Stakeholdership

ImagineIC would be nothing without other organisations. People knock on our door for help, space, networking, facilities, in short, for all kinds of coöperation. Often we can find a means of helping each other out.
Today I spoke with two people from Antillean TV for example and the guys from the Temple of Hiphop kept me company during the late hours of working overtime.
Some other participants: Ting Chan exhibits right now her beautiful portraits of immigrant families in their living room.