May 30, 2026
This video below brings back a memory I love to share.
Shopping in Holland is a daily affair, largely because the Dutch don’t use preservatives in their packaged foods the way we do. Refrigerators there are tiny, and there are markets in virtually every town. We had a good-sized market about eight or ten blocks away in downtown Amstelveen, where we lived; with fresh fish, potatoes, all kinds of vegetables, flowers, flowers, and more flowers. I should also mention that it rains frequently in that part of the country.
My work for Cisco kept me on the phone around the clock — my team was spread across the world, spanning different time zones and different work weeks. That explains why I’m sitting outside our home in Amstelveen, in my car, having just arrived home, conducting business in the rain.
At some point I glanced into my side mirror and smiled at the sight coming up behind me: a woman in full Dutch fashion — long black leather jacket, hair wrapped in a scarf, pedaling her bike back from the market. I smiled because I genuinely loved the culture. Umbrella in one hand, the handlebar basket overflowing with flowers and produce, the two rear panniers stuffed with bags, and a dog trotting contentedly alongside her.
And then it hit me. That big beautiful smile — it was Patty. And the dog trotting beside her was our Jasmine.
This was, and I am sure still IS, a common sight in The Netherlands.