iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 25/09/2026

Finally saw the Pagliacci opera live here in Amsterdam. The 'ridi pagliaccio!' moment is indeed intense. My spouse: "I thought, hey wait, this is the opening of Queen's 'Its a Hard Life'!"

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 09/09/2026

We very rarely watch a film at home or any sort of tv. We do see movies a lot but at Cineville independent cinemas which allows us to see an unlimited amount of films for about 30 euros a month. (Have watched stuff on Arte.tv and lascala.tv I recall) cineville.nl/en-GB/films I have even […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 08/09/2026

Had to go to Den Haag for some BS bureaucratic stuff. But with all the embassies there we spent a long time wandering up and down streets identifying embassies only by the flag hanging outside. Nerds, I know.

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 05/09/2026

Amazing day yesterday going out again to the windy Dutch beaches to see the Strand Beasts race across the sand. strandbeest.com

Child on a beach standing in front of a strand beast

Theo Jansen in front of one of his creations

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 24/08/2026

A francophile dragged me to go see De Gaulle: Resistance. I couldn't help thinking that CDG was a great comic figure, too outlandish to be real. But he was. Also wondered what was fictional. Who was that one woman at the battle of Bir Hakeim? Turns out she was real. Susan Travers and she […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 12/08/2026

Spent this week traveling through rural Spain, guided by friends who live here and know every farm cheese shop and hidden church. And now..a total eclipse...

Spanish medieval town. Me in the foreground looking back

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 04/08/2026

Few things make me happier than seeing The Durutti Column come out with a new album!! The last one was in 2010 and Vini's ethereal guitar is mesmerizing as it always was. Just beautiful. www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVa6cmgPCAs…

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 02/08/2026

If anyone is suddenly feeling an urge to learn Ancient Greek, I highly recommend John Taylor's 'Greek to GCSE' which will rapidly take you to reading Greek. Halfway through this slim volume, you are already reading Homer (the Cyclops episode)

Picture of a book: Greek to GCSE by John Taylor

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 29/07/2026

This is the only thing I play on a daily basis. Usually drinking coffee at the same time... I solved the daily #CluesBySam, Jul 29th 2026 (Tricky), in 03:34 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩 cluesbysam.com

cluesbysam.com

Clues by Sam

A daily logic puzzle where you deduce who is a criminal!

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 21/07/2026

One of the best coffees I have ever had is an Amsterdam coffee - Fried Hats. It is so good that when the LA Times food critic went to Melbourne to have great coffee - they served him Fried Hats from the Netherlands. #Amsterdam #friedhats […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 28/06/2026

I had forgotten about this photo. How wonderful. Saw it at a Ruth Orkin photo exhibition in Bologna last week!

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 22/05/2026

One of my oldest friends was telling me stories about his grandfather John. At one point, at the age of 99, John Miller was the oldest active pilot in the US. He started flying in 1922 and was the first to fly a rotorcraft across the US. He was also a famous cross-dresser under the name Felicity […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 02/05/2026

Our little Baobab. C. insists it's named Senghor. But for me Bob the Baobab just flows off the tongue so easily.

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 01/05/2026

Biked out to the Rijn Kanal this evening - the canal that connects Amsterdam to the Rhine. Such pleasant biking. I cannot imagine ever leaving this country, for the bike paths alone. #Amsterdam

Shadows of two people biking taken from one of the bikes. Bike path goes into the horizon, surrounded by greenery

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 29/04/2026

The Seagull Screeching Championship in Belgium makes me unreasonably happy. Maybe next year! www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXjBjd1FZAk

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Reposted by ricardo vacapinta

Jan Adriaenssens @verbeeld.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 17/11/2024

Using GPS in the year 1565 There’s a wonderful web app (“Allmaps Here”) that shows your GPS location on old maps. I love it. www.verbeeld.be/2024/11/17/using-gp… #maps #allmapshere #cartography #georeferencing

A vintage map showing a detailed, hand-drawn layout of a historic city with tightly packed buildings, narrow streets, and several landmarks. There is a purple marker near the center of the map. A button at the bottom reads, "Show maps around current location."

A city square with cobblestone paving and historic European architecture under a clear blue sky. In the center, a building with a stepped gable façade is surrounded by older structures. There's a person in a brown coat walking a small dog nearby.

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 26/04/2026

They're here!!!! Each year I watch for the swifts returning from Africa to our neighborhood in Amsterdam. Saw a small group doing their swooping and screaming over our heads this morning. Apr 24, 2020 May 3, 2021 May 6, 2022 Apr 29, 2023 Apr 28, 2024 Apr 27 […] [Original post on mastodon.coffee]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 25/04/2026

Happy Portuguese Carnation Revolution Day!! A bloodless revolution is something that can be done.

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 11/04/2026

There's more international (not Dutch or English) bookshops opening in Amsterdam! -French Le Temps Retrouvé Le Chat Noir -Italian Alfabeto Libri -Spanish The Book Nook -Russian Pegasus Any others? I know Athenaeum (the best Dutch bookstore) has many books in other languages too. A large […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 09/04/2026

Found a fantastic bookstore in Lisbon called Gondwanaland. Books from the Southern Hemisphere. Many Argentinian writers and other Latin Americans but also African writers. Most books in their original language if possible! Picked up books by Donoso, Chejfec […] [Original post on mastodon.coffee]

Three books shown
Jose Donoso, Coronacion
Sergio Chejfec, Mondo Linterna
Cesar Aira, Actos de Presencia

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 20/03/2026

It's that time of year to visit the 400 Japanese cherry trees in Amsterdam given to the city by the Japanese women's club in 2000. #Amsterdam

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 14/03/2026

An actual phrase I uttered today - to my brother. "You should let them know we have a mariachi, otherwise they might arrive with their own mariachi."

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 11/03/2026

The 1969 film Invasion was written by Jorge Luis Borges and Bioy Casares. It is a science fiction film about mysterious invaders and it is difficult to say more. Now on Youtube (Spanish with French subtitles) www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxP1ftEepoE

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 09/03/2026

Did you know that Dutch kids in school have to take a biking theory test and also a practice test where they are judged on safety when they are about 10 years old? I'm always learning things like this thanks to knowing a Dutch family with kids!

classroom with a tv screen showing what looks like a biker approaching a street intersection with arrows and options highlighted

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 08/03/2026

Heron waiting outside the kitchen for food scraps. But he doesn't know it's Sunday! #Amsterdam

Zoom out. Grey Heron on the sidewalk standing by a door

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 27/02/2026

Was pretty sure the camera on my Linux laptop wasn't working. Finally realized it was hardware-disabled by default. So I had to get my machine to recognize the device. Still didn't work. The problem: My laptop (from Tuxedo laptops in Germany ) comes with a little slider that covers up the […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 21/02/2026

I didn't even know there was an Internet Archive Europe until I walked past its HQ here in Amsterdam last week! Attended a talk there yesterday by Brewster Kahle who is in Europe this month! @internetarchiveeurope

photo of an amsterdam building. A flag that says 'Internet Archive Europe' is flying out front

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 18/02/2026

A candidate for the title of greatest physicist of the 20th century was a Chinese woman. One of my heroes. The only Chinese person on the Manhattan project. Only she could figure out Uranium separation. Her greatest work came later, when she devised a mind-blowing experiment that showed that […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 24/01/2026

Tulips in bloom is one of nice things about this time of year. #tulips #tulpen #amsterdam

A table with a vase with red tulips on it. Also books and pens on the table.

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 17/01/2026

This last week in Rome I saw one of the most beautiful statues I have ever seen: The Boxer at Rest. It is a bronze, life-size statue. Bronze statues are rare (they were melted for weaponry) and this statue was intentionally hidden away only to be rediscovered […] [Original post on mastodon.coffee]

Statue of a muscular man seated. Boxing gloves on his hands.

Black and white photo of an excavation. The statue in the other photo is seen here as found, alone, resting upon a shelf of soil.

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 12/12/2025

Saw a motorcade today here in Amsterdam and it was for the president of Finland, Alexander Stubb. C is a big fan of his and waved and cheered him as he went by. He waved back (the car windows were only lightly tinted) and it made her day. (The Dutch King was sitting next to him and also waved […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 12/12/2025

Mindless accumulation of wealth is an illness. See the current crop of billionaires sitting on piles of gold stolen from society. I'm heartened by the fact that when you put a 'normal' person in charge of billions their instinct is to give it back to the people it was stolen from. See this post […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 28/11/2025

Biked all the way to Amsterdam West (8km away for me) for two special and delicious things: Baklava from Serifoglu. Perfectly balanced, made with pistachios from Gaziantep. Brought back a small box. Coffee from Fried Hats. My favorite coffee in all of […] [Original post on mastodon.coffee]

Plate with a slice of pumpkin pie. Black mug next to it which reads: Fried Hats

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 21/11/2025

Seeing a movie at the Tuschinski in Amsterdam is such a treat. Probably the most beautiful cinema I've ever been in. #Amsterdam #Tuschinski #ArtDeco

View of a cinema screen in what looks like an old theater with balconies

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 20/11/2025

Picking up my Christmas Panettone from Chiara's on VanWoustraat! Its that time of year. Might as well have an espresso and a taste of another panettone while I'm here... #Amsterdam #Panettone

tabletop with an espresso with a bit of panettone. Another bag in the background - which holds a panettone box!

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 18/11/2025

Strolling through the Louvre with kids. They are half-paying attention. Finaly we reach the Code of Hammurabi Stele. Kids: Whats that? Father: An ancient code of Laws Kids: Yawn Father: For example..."If a son strikes his father, his hand will be cut off.." Kids: You have our full attention.

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 16/11/2025

I went to the Minimal exhibition at the Bourse de Commerce in Paris expecting to be unmoved. For the most part this was true. But they had a Lygia Pape work which was astounding. Illuminated threads from floor to ceiling simulating shafts of sunlight […] [Original post on mastodon.coffee]

Golden threads from top to bottom at various angles in an otherwise dark room

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 11/11/2025

Just got through giving out bags of candy for St. Martins day here in Amsterdam. Kids come and sing and you hand them candy. Word must have gotten out that we were giving out American level of candies and we got swamped!!

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 06/11/2025

Was near Javastraat tonight and stopped at one of the Turkish bakeries to get some Borek. Owner was closing shop so gave us tons of free food! Invited some neighbors over and had a feast. Petit fours too. I love Javastraat, some of the best food in Amsterdam and totally off the tourist radar […]

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 18/10/2025

Original manuscript of Wittgensteins Philosophical Investigations at Vienna's Literature Museum. One of the highlights of my trip to Vienna. #vienna #wien #wittgenstein

A museum plaque stating in German that this is Wittgenstein Philosophical Investigations manuscript. A corner of the manuscript can be seen.

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 15/10/2025

My US drivers license expires this year and I cannot renew it. I should - but haven't - applied for a Dutch one. All this means that I cannot legally drive a car. Given that I haven't driven a car for 5 years, I'm not seeing this as a problem..

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 14/10/2025

In all the discussions about migrants here in Amsterdam, one key statistic is I think overlooked. If we look at the percentage of Amsterdammers that were foreign-born throughout recent history, it has only been higher than it is now at one point in time: We […] [Original post on mastodon.coffee]

Graph from the 1300's to today showing the percent of Amsterdam residents born abroad. The peak (40%) occurs in the early 1600s, compared to today (35%)

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2025

It only recently occurred to me to walk by the Hilton here in Amsterdam and look up at the corner suite where Yoko and John had their bed-in. Look closely. The phrases 'bed peace' and 'hair peace' are there on the windows. #amsterdam #peace

Zoomed in to see the phrases bed peace and hair peace written inside the glass

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ricardo vacapinta @vacapinta.mastodon.coffee.ap.brid.gy · 20/09/2025

My current active/about-to-read list: Thomas Bernhard - Woodcutters Ingeborg Bachmann - Malina Dino Buzzati - The Stronghold Carlo Ginzburg - Threads and Traces Cristina Rivera Garza - Habia Mucho Neblina o humo no se que Philipp Blom - Fracture Macedonio […] [Original post on mastodon.coffee]

A photo containing four books:
Carlo Ginzburg - Threads and Traces
Cristina Rivera Garza - Habia Mucho Neblina o humo no se que
Philipp Blom - Fracture
Macedonio Fernandez - Museo de la Novela Eterna

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