Bob Droog

Paragraph on a Folk Object; Wooden Shoes

Wooden shoes symbolizes the Dutch culture. This folk object is completely hand made and has been carried for centuries. It reflects shared and community experience. Wooden shoes are always made by the old fashion traditional way. Creating wooden shoes is extremely tricky; its taught to children by their parents or great parents. Back in the day it was worn by everyone. Nowadays, it’s only worn by the old fashion farmers; it has become an Dutch culture symbol to the Netherlands. The wooden shoes connect individuals to the environment because almost everybody is interested and wondering how it’s made. People all around the world come visit the Netherlands and walk around the famous markets where they show you the Dutch culture. They also show how they make the wooden shoes in the old fashion traditional way.

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How To Rebuild Your Computer and Reinstall Windows from Scratch

Your computer is slow and not doing what you want it to do. It’s driving you insane, and you just want to throw the computer out the window. Every time you get pop-ups, viruses, and more stuff on your computer which is not supposed to be there. Now you can make the difference by fresh installing your computer from scratch in 5 steps.

First of all, you need to be sure that you have a Windows CD. Without this, we can’t really do anything. If you do not have a Windows CD, you can get one at any computer shop near you. This is not cheap, so double check your cabinets before buying. After that, look at both sides of your computer case; there should be a Windows sticker with a serial number. This number is your personal ID to register your Windows version with Microsoft. They do this to confirm you paid for your Windows operation system. Now double check if you have a CD/DVD reader or writer. If you don’t know how to check this, look at the front of your CD/DVD reader or writer, and it will show you what it is. As soon as you have all the information and hardware together, we may start.

These are the steps to rebuild and reinstall your computer. First, make sure you have made the proper backups you need of your personal documents, such as word documents, pictures, and your music. Secondly, put your Windows CD in the CD/DVD reader and restart your computer. The computer will ask if you want to boot the CD. Press the space bar to boot the Windows CD. Don’t be scared now; it may look difficult to go through this menu, but it is not that hard. What we are going to do next is formatting the C: drive. This will sweep everything off your hard drive and prepare your computer for a fresh install of Windows. When that is done, you have to select the C: drive and press enter to start the Windows wizard, which will do a fresh install of your Windows system. Next, follow the steps of the Windows wizard. The wizard will help you through the process of installing Windows the way you like it. This process will take about an hour to finish. As soon as the installation is complete, you will see the speed difference already. Immediately, the computer will restart itself after the installation. When Windows is fully started, all you have to do next is install all the hardware drivers. These can be found at the website of the computer company you bought it from. For example, if you have a Sony computer, you may visit Sony.com for the drivers needed. They provide these drivers for free.

Finally, you can enjoy your fast and fresh installed personal computer. You now have no more frustrations, but for how long all depends on how you treat your computer.

Education in the Netherlands

Education is really important to the Netherlands. The Dutch believe you have to start education as young as possible. When you are young, you learn faster and are more open to things than when you are older. That’s why everyone has to attend school when they turn four years old. This way, the Dutch people believe they will be higher educated, get better jobs, and get a higher salary.

When you think about higher education, you may think about better rated schools, such as colleges where you can earn a degree and transfer from.  Most likely, these are the bigger schools with more programs available, such as schools we have in Amsterdam or Leiden, for example. Also, online school may be a good option if you are working and want to improve your knowledge of your job. This can make you a professional when earning a higher educational degree involving job related skills and improvements. If you are not planning on going to a college, which has full classes, you may have to consider going to a private school.

By improving your knowledge of your job, you will be able to get a better job or get a higher job status. Becoming a professional can be really important, but it is not easy to become one. Before you become a professional, you have to be sure that you have the right degree or diplomas. Also, it would be a good thing that you like what you are doing for a living, so choosing the right education is necessary. Don’t forget, experience is also really important in becoming a professional.

Improvements and specialization in your job can bring you a better and higher salary. If you are not satisfied with your regular salary and want to earn more, but you also want to learn more about your job, you could always do more schooling to become a professional and become specialized in your job. Your salary is based on what you do and what you know. Improving your knowledge is mainly the way to earn more money with any job. When you do not have the proper diplomas, certifications, or degrees, it’s hard to make more money than you are doing right now.

In conclusion, to get a high salary and a good job you like, you are always going to have to think about education. In the Netherlands, all the company’s that hire want your knowledge and skills on paper before they can hire you. Therefore, the best way to do well in life is by going to school and getting all the certifications, diploma’s, and degrees you can get.

Comparing Dutch and U.S. Food Cultures

People find other cultures strange as it can be. Take food, for example; some cultures believe not to eat some kind of animal, while it is a delicacy in another culture. There are a lot of differences between cultures in the United States and the Netherlands as well.

The United States, on the other hand, has a lot of similarity to the Dutch culture. For example, the Dutch eat supper between 5 and 7 PM, just like the American citizens. The old fashioned Dutch farmers eat supper a little earlier because they get up early in the morning and work until late at night. The Dutch loves healthy food, but sometimes it’s ok to eat a greasy, fat hamburger. Dutch citizens love their friends to come over for supper when it’s a sunny day. That way they can fire up the barbeque and eat all together. Food brings people together, whether it’s in the Netherlands or in the United States.

When there are similarities between cultures, there are also things completely different between both of them. One of them is the way people eat in the United States. For breakfast, they eat unhealthy food, such as a hamburger, from McDonald’s. This is unacceptable in the Netherlands. The Dutch always eat something like a sandwich or cereal and milk for breakfast. In the Netherlands, most families eat two cold meals a day and one warm meal for dinner. When you take a look at the eating style of the United States, it seems very different. One family eats whatever, the other eats healthy, and the family around the corner eats Burger King every day. The Dutch take more time to cook for their family than most families in the United States do. Going out to dinner is too expensive in the Netherlands. That’s why they eat six days out of seven at home. Some families don’t even bother going out for dinner and cook every meal themselves. They like to cook with fresh vegetables and other items used in their food from the local market.

Finally, most people don’t even see how many differences there are between certain cultures. It’s really interesting to find out that something abnormal is considered normal in another culture.

Television Can Be Harmful To Kids

These days, there are a lot of educational channels for children; however, also, violent or noneducational channels are seen by these kids. Watching violent television shows changes the mind and could make your child become more violent. Some people feel that television can be good for their kids; however, others feel the opposite.

According to Carey Bryson, kids can see and explore other things through media they normally couldn’t see, such as new places and strange animals. Children get inspired by television shows to try new activities and engage learning’s. Also, some television shows could motivate kids to read books (Bryson, par. 2-4).

Carey Bryson states that kids can see and explore other things through media they normally couldn’t see, such as new places and strange animals. However, some television shows are not appropriate to be seen by children. There are scary movies, shows where people get killed, shows which show nudity and sexual activity, and more. Most of these shows are shown in high quality and perfected in detail; kids will think this is real. Children can get nightmares and lack of sleep during the night, caused by these television shows, which creates emotional stress (Miller, par. 3).

Carey Bryson claims that television shows can inspire kids to try new activities and engage new learnings. However, children most likely choose to try a new dangerous activity, something they have seen on a television, such as Jackass. Doing a new activity such as jumping from a building on a trampoline into a pool is not what I would call engaging in new learnings. This is highly dangerous, and they could get hurt or even worse, kill themselves. Television has a large amount of power in our world. Children think that it’s OK to do what they have seen on television. Daphne Miller from CNN/WebMD.com says, “Only a handful of programs teach children important skills such as math, reading, science or problem solving” (Miller, par. 3).

Carey Bryson mentions that TV and movies can motivate kids to read books. However, most children do not want to read books. Even though their parents would like to make a deal with them, such as, “the promise of going to the theater or renting the movie when they finish it” (Bryson, par. 4). Some kids will accept this deal but stop reading after a couple pages, and then the parents will still take them to the theater. The parents would say, we tried. However, they should know better, and trying is not good enough. They should stand up and say to finish the book first. If not, we are not going to the theater.

Finally, now we know that TV shows can be harmful to kids. Television changes the way people think, especially children. Therefore, in my opinion, you have to limit your children to what they are allowed to see and for how long.

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The way to succes

It has been over a month since my last post, I have been so busy with everything! It’s just crazy! But I have good news. I’ve got my permit, finally. So now it’s time to take the drivers test and get my license! I think I’m going to make an appointment with the Driver Examiners Office in Hugo, Colorado. Which is located in the middle of nowhere, so that should be easy! I took my permit test in Colorado Springs, and failed 4 questions out of 25. So I passed in one time! Woohoo!! You are allowed to fail 5 questions, and I did not even study for it like others did. It took me 2 months waiting for response from the SSA office though. (Social Services Administration Office) It was just ridiculous, they told me I was eligible for a social security number, while I told them I was not. So after all, they had to give me that denial to get my permit anyways. haha.

About school, things are really good. Advanced Composition and Advanced Reading are really helping me understanding English better. Advanced Composition really helps me with punctuation, and Advanced Reading with understanding what your reading. besides that I’m doing Welding. I’m totally loving it. I’m doing GMAW (Gas Metal Arc Welding). You would think I’m doing Arc Welding, but it’s actually MIG. So that is totally awesome! Tuesday, March 9th was the first day we actually welded. We had to do the safety test first, though. But I’m sure we all got an A for that. After that, we started to do our own thing and started Welding.

Also, I have been thinking about my future. What do I want to do? What do I want to get my Minor, Associate and Bachelor in? I think I want Welding as my minor. And I would love to do CIS (Computer Information Systems) and get a bachelor degree. So I still have some brainstorming and researching to do! But I’ll get there. I still have summer to think about everything and clear my mind.

The weather out here in Yoder and Colorado Springs has been really weird. One day it snows and we have about two inch of snow, and then in the morning we have lots of sun, and it’s all gone in couple hours. Makes Colorado pretty interesting doesn’t? OH! By the way, I got a new bike. It’s totally awesome. I got a TREK 4600. I have been riding my new bike a lot already. Riding a bike out here is pretty intense because there are a lot of ups and downs. (Mountains) It’s not just one straight way, like in Holland. Let me show you a picture of my bike, here it is!

They say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.

Since my last post, a lot has changed. For example, my classes. I have been doing EMS for a couple weeks but found out that this would be to fast and too difficult for me right now. I just wasn’t ready for it. So I managed to drop this class on the last day we were allowed to do so. Instead I’m taking Welding now. When I was in Colorado around 2007/2008 I took Welding in High School and those credits were transferred to the college which I am attending right now. So it would be a shame if I wouldn’t go any further with it. I am taking Advanced Composition, Advanced Reading and Welding now. So that should keep me busy. And this is the last time I changed this semester.. cause I can’t change it now anymore. haha.

Besides school, I’m still waiting for my social security number so I can get my permit and/or license. I can’t wait until I get this, because, living this far from town and having no license and/or car, makes it kind of hard to do stuff. Like going to school, or hanging out with friends. I’m skipping the hanging out with friends right now, because I don’t like to ask for rides. For the “going to school part” we found a solution. In the morning when some of the people I live with go down to work. I ride along, and then when we get there I take the bus up to my college. Most likely this gives me a lot of time at the college, which is kind of nice. Because then I can either make my home work or just do some research in the library. Only it sucks when I’ve done all of my home work already. So yeah.. but you know how it goes. Life goes on!

First day of College

Today, was the day.. My first day of a new beginning. College, a new start of a life. A start of a process to a career. It was actually a pretty good day, even though I had to be present at the college around 8 AM. Because that was the time when my first class started. So my french buddy Tim took me up there and dropped me off before he went to work.

They scheduled me for Advanced Composition, Grammar and Reading. After I took these classes today, I still felt like there was something wrong. I was in a class full with foreigners. Which is cool, but I didn’t expect. Who had either a little or NO English basic skills at all. Plus I did not want to be in three English classes at the same time. So I went down to one of the people who could help me and talked to them about this. We figured out I could drop Grammar, so I can take an EMS Class. Which is great! So now I need to contact this lady from the Emergency Medical Services to get into a class.. ASAP!

So after classes I tried to go see this lady, but she seemed like not to be on campus today. So I need to contact her through either mail or by phone. — So to be continued about that subject!

After I tried all this, I just relaxed and hung out..Thank god I brought my iPod Touch! .. waiting for Tim to call me, he would pick me up after work he said. He’s such a nice frenchy.