This is me!

Hello there!

I feel like I can have enjoyable and productive one-way conversations with you. First I shall introduce myself, because I so rarely get to do that properly.

My name is Daniël Tiggelovend. The two dots on the ‘e’ in ‘Daniël’ indicate that my name is officially pronounced in the Dutch way. However, the people who know me well, who there are very few of, know that I prefer the English pronunciation, as I speak English for the majority of the time. I’m thinking about changing my registered name when I turn eighteen, by removing the dots from the ‘e’. Then I might have a chance of seeming less Dutch. As you might have guessed by now, I live in Holland (born and raised). The only reason for me speaking English all the time is because I was taught English by my mother before I entered my Dutch primary school. She did this because she was raised British herself (even though she was born in Jamaica). This means I am entitled to say I am half Jamaican, without being able to even fake the Jamaican accent. I’m black, but light skinned, due to my white Dutch father. I haven’t encountered any forms of racism over the years that made me particularly angry. People sometimes make stupid jokes, but that just makes me laugh at their ignorance.

My childhood wasn’t hard at all, but it was very vague, because I couldn’t understand anyone around me until I learned how to speak Dutch properly. Because I was young, I picked up the language quickly. My Dutch skills were adequate by the time I was eight. I did still have troubles with grammar, but that changed for the better in the following years.

At the moment I am seventeen years old, which (in Holland) is enough to drink beer, but not to drive a car. I don’t mind that, because I have nowhere to go right now anyway. Over the years, I have picked up two hobby’s. Neither of them have ever proven to be productive or even special.

My first hobby is one that 5 out of 10 people share: playing the guitar. I used to play Spanish melodies on my acoustic guitar, but since two years ago, I have developed an interest in playing rock tunes on my (borrowed) green electric guitar, Jade (whose name is obviously derived from its colour). So far, my amateurish skills have landed me a 2^nd guitar position in a high school cover band. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy playing with them and I think we sound pretty good. I’m just very pessimistic about getting anywhere with this, and I doubt that the other people in the band even want to continue playing after high school. Nevertheless, I will keep on smiling and nodding when they tell me to learn another depressing song so that we can rehearse for the once-a-year performance in school, which is basically a talent show without any form of competition.

My second hobby is sure to get me nowhere, let alone impress anybody but myself: singing along with my favourite songs behind my computer. I know that sounds like something you just do when you’re bored, or working on a project, or even just relaxing. Yet, I can spend hours at school, waiting to go home, put on some Motown, Soul and R&B and sing my lungs out. I spend hours doing it, all the while neglecting homework, household chores and of course, my social contacts. There is only one problem; I can’t sing! Even though it’s a major problem, I manage to overcome it by turning up the volume to a level, at which it is impossible to even hear my own voice. I have tried to flaunt my “vocal skills” in front of my friends. The friends who actually regularly perform on stage, mostly dancing and singing, are sympathetic enough not to break my spirit. However, the honest and serious friends are happy to confirm that my singing voice is not ready for an audience yet.

I don’t have much else going for me these days. I don’t do any sports and I don’t have a job. I used to do gymnastics, but soon after I discovered my love for food, I got to heavy for my wrists and had to quit. However, I have managed to get myself into physical state that is regarded by others as ‘not fat’ rather than ‘pudgy’. I also used to have a job at the local Albert Heijn, but I got bored of stocking shelves after a year and a half. After that, I’ve been gradually getting more and more broke. I now completely rely on my parents to get me food and booze, instead of being able to cope without them.

So why am I writing this, even though nobody will probably read it, unless I tell them to? I guess I’m searching for inspiration to write songs. I’m thinking of making that my third hobby. I’ll probably give anything that has to do with music a try before I reach my full-time-job age. That includes mixing music, a second instrument, and also rapping (even though I already know I suck at that). Anything that doesn’t have to do with music (and in most cases, comedy), will most probably not catch my interest at all. So, without possessing any sort of musical talent, I can say with some certainty, that I’m looking at a boring life full of crushed dreams.