Masterchef

If there is something I can watch on telly all day long, it's not football, nor is it CSI: Miami. It's anything related to cooking.

I love Hell's Kitchen USA, where Gordon Ramsay curses those poor wannabe chefs fighting for a chance to make it big time. He absolutely tears into them, it's a surprise none of the wannabe chefs have slapped him in retaliation or even said "FUCK YOU!" back at him.

I've also been watching Masterchef on BBC. Just watching how those people cook and present their dishes, and how it should taste is really drawing me in.

Some other stupid cooking shows like Ready Steady Cook, Great British Menu, Saturday Morning Kitchen, Nigella, even shows with Jamie Oliver and/or Ainsley Harriott in it, I'll watch them. If I'm not working and there is something with cooking on the telly, I'll watch it.

Watching all these cooking shows have influenced my cooking. I used to be a "put-it-all-in-the-pan" kind of cook, but now I make sure that everything is seasoned and cooked properly. Last weekend we had a dinner party with friends and I made some fish that was presented in a manner that would have made that Masterchef critic proud.

Maybe I should sign up for the next Hell's Kitchen...

Sunny London

Last Friday I wrote on my facebook status that I was going to London to escape from my rainy town.

Well, fact was that it was sunny and bright in London over the weekend, whereas it was raining here.

Can you believe it, the weather is actually nicer in the UK? Not a lot of people believed me. Heck, I couldn't believe it myself.

Anyway, it was a nice weekend away in London to see some friends who got engaged.

Music and personality

I stumbled upon this news item on the beeb today:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/7598549.stm

A study shows that musical tastes and personality types are closely linked. So by knowing what music tastes someone has, you can tell the personality of that person.

So here I am, and I like pop and rock. Pure unadulterated pop best mixed with some crunching guitars, although now and then I listen to some indie, some soul, some rap/hip-hop, some blues. But my main musical taste is pop-rock.

The study says this about people who like chart pop: "High self-esteem, not creative, hardworking, outgoing, gentle, not at ease" and this about people who like rock/heavy metal: "Low self-esteem, creative, not hard-working, not outgoing, gentle, at ease".

Now I am confused. Do I have high self-esteem or low self-esteem? Am I creative or not? Am I hard-working or not? Am I outgoing or not? Am I at ease or not? The common personalities between those two musical tastes is "gentle" and "at ease". So I can say that I am truly "gentle" and "at ease". But for the rest, this study has not shown what my personality is.

Maybe I should listen to more blues.

Ajax 2008-2009

I just realised I haven't blogged about Ajax for a while.

The season just started last Saturday and Ajax is looking good (although they started the campaign with a 1-2 loss against Willem II). Marco van Basten is now the headcoach, bringing his buddies John Van't Schip and Rob Witschge along as assistant coaches.

Players in: Dario Cvitanich (top scorer last season in Argentina); Miralem "Micky" Sulejmani (a revelation from last season, he's now the most expensive Dutch transfer); Oleguer Presas (the Catalan socialist who played for Barcelona before); Ismail Aissati (one of the most talented footballers in Netherlands, snapped from rivals PSV) and Evander Sno (young midfielder from Celtic).

Players out: Kenneth Perez (too old, too annoying); Albert Luque (hasn't showed how good he used to be); Nicolae Mitea (too many injuries); Jurgen Colin (simply awful); George Ogararu (that's what you get when you get beaten by a 35 year old Marc Overmars who hasn't played professionally in 4 years).

The team is shaping up very solidly and hopefully by the end of this season they will be champion. It's about bloody time!