prolific.org

UPC is changing its digital TV package and for once, it’s to my advantage. The (total) price is going down (no more separate bills for analog and digital) and I will be getting a few more channels, including (huzzah!) BBC 3 (new drama, comedy) and BBC 4 (culture, arts, science). I’ll never have to leave the house again.

Medy van der Laan, Harm Bruins Slot, et al

Found myself in the company of at least three of my (ex-)bosses today, from ‘95 till now (AVRO, RNW, VARA, Publieke Omroep). Lots of other familiar faces from the early days of public broadcasting online were there as well. Highlight of the afternoon was supposed to be the presentation of a book on 10 years of Omroep.nl to State Secretary (for Education, Culture and Science) Medy van der Laan, but I preferred the showing of ‘Kwik’ (Dutch for Huey, as in Huey, Dewey and Louis). Kwik was the very first server our domain, Omroep.nl, ran on. A flat, blue Silicon Graphics machine that cost about 20,000 Euro. Aw, bless.

Took loads of pictures, only a few of which are presentable.

For the next 24 hours, I am science’s bitch. I am a guinea pig in a friend’s friend’s stress profile research.

I have 6 electrodes stuck to my body and wires that lead to a device I carry on my hip. A second device sits on my table, it has a switch and a mouth piece that I get to blow in whenever a piece of Palm pilot software tells me to.

When I go to sleep tonight, I will do so with plastic tubes up my nose, attached to a third device which will measure the gasses I emit while breathing.

Every hour and a half, the Palm pilot guides me through a routine and asks me questions. (“Who are you with?”, “How do you feel”, “Where are you?”) From time to time, I will have to chew on tampon sized piece of cotton wool.

Tomorrow, I get to carry all the gear into work with me.