Local Windmill, Dalem

(almost sounds like 'dahlin')

Pressure in my head. Again. Doing things because they need to be done, but not terrifically motivated. Out of the office in the blink of an eye.

And yet the work is going well. Very well, in fact.

Sometimes I think I'm paying for all the years when I overtimed. Worked 16+ hours a day, EXcluding the driving. Drove 1200 km. a week. 5-7 days a week. All corners of the country. All kinds of weather. Gave it everything. Not a single gesture of recognition from management. Work elsewhere now but I don't care about that part any more. Even if they swear tomorrow that they love me to death.

And yet management does seem a lot fairer where I work now.

Writing this has relieved me ... quite, actually.

When I got away today, I knew where I wanted to go -- Vuren and Dalem, which are close to Gorinchem ('Gorkum'). The weather was fickle, but, well, so was I, mood-wise. This shot was taken near the river exactly at the border between the Gorinchem and Dalem. Dalem is a tiny village which is actually part of the municipality of Gorinchem.

More shots here ... and, if you haven't looked yet, this is my Flickr site so far.

While I was busy with the photoshoot, several dog-owners were walking their best friends and one of them was an Englishman who originally comes from Newcastle (Northumbria). I had addressed him in Dutch, thinking he was a local, but, although he understood me, he replied in English, which wasn't a problem, of course. He's thinking of going back someday. Suddenly, all I could think of at that moment was going back home.