Disaster (Large)

I spent the whole Feburary in Amsterdam, just flew back to Tokyo on the 26th. The winter in Amsterdam is very unpredictable, the temperature dropped below freezing point, snow came at any minute. Freezing rain followed, sometimes fogs was so thick that you cannot see the building across the street.

I managed to bike to and fro work, but spent most of my time after work in the gym in my apartment. There is not point going out, IT IS FREEZING COLD everywhere you go. As my assignment comes to an end, my colleagues were all eager to grap the last chance to party with me (strange that they want to drink with this ill-tempered and not-really-socialable me, I guess that's because I bake cookies for them from time to time). Just before the Friday I am flying out, I agreed to go drinking with my team in a college bar nearby our office.

We played fool's ball (it is quite funny to see a couple of 2-meter guys tweaking the small machinary and got emotional when losing), pool and, of course, drinking the lethal Belgium beer, Le Chauffeur. As I made my way to the door, my manager called me and stuff me another glass of Westmaller. Ok, fine, I can have another drink. After that, I insisted to go, I wobbled to my bike, strapped my laptop in the back of the bike with the bungee cord as I alwasy did for the past 10 months and started my journey home.

Not until I got home then I realised that my computer was not where it is supposed to be. My spine was chilled, how could this happened? How am I going to live without a computer? How about all those personal data, bank information, stock shares records? Never mentions the work-related files, I have got a number of banks' customization , risk management system design documentation. I was nearly at the edge of breaking down, as a consultant, you are dead if you don't have your computer with you.

Cannot think too much, I turned around and traced the route I came from, hoping that we can trust Dutch people's integrity if the computer bag had fallen over my bike on my way home. I biked up and down the route for almost half an hour to no avail. I finally gave up and got back home, pulling out a sheet and writing down steps of damage control. It took me a couple of hours to really calm down, after all, it is as if I have lost my life for the past 2 and half years (not really like I have had life but ...). It is when you start to kick yourself really hard thinking what kind of idiot you are not backing up your hard drive on weekly basis.

Luckily I flew back to Tokyo in that vary weekend, I can have a spare laptop to use. Later I was informed that there were a couple of losing cell phones and laptops in the pub that night, I suspect the criminal must have followed me outside to my bike and pulled the computer bag (which just slipping through the elastic cord very easily) while I was riding away. Now I understand why Dutch people never strap anything in the back of bicycle except a case of beer.