We had a ‘hospiteeravond’ last night. There’s not really an English word for this, or at least I don’t know of an English word for it. ‘Hospiteren’ means being a candidate for a room in a student dorm. It means that you are one of a few and usually many people who are interested in the room.

One evening all these candidates come to the house, and the people who already live in the house ask questions, show them the room and the house and ask the candidates to tell something about themselves etc. After everybody left, the people already living in the house decide who they would want to live with and thus who gets the room. It’s like soliciting for a job, but then not for a job, but for a room.

Anyway… like I said… we had a ‘hospiteer‘-evening last night because…

…Ruben is leaving the house to live on his own. About ten people came so it was quite crowdy, but we managed it :). There were quite a few interesting people, and we had difficulties choosing between two of them, one guy of 22 who had had a significant job already and who had lived in his own appartment but couldn’t afford it anymore and one guy of 18 who’s going to study physics here in Leiden. It was a difficult choice but in the end we chose for the younger guy to make sure that the flow of people coming into and going out of the house is continues.

While we were discussing this though, it took me a while to realize why I was more inclined to vote for the older guy, then for the younger guy. I had been used to the people in the house being older than me. And it feels unfamiliar and maybe even creepy to have people in the house younger than myself.

In the end I realized why I felt this way. I really miss Boefje, who left the house two months ago… I know you’re reading this, boefje, so… Thanks again mate for the always pleasurable company and being a big brother for me ;). Too bad it’s over, but well… We cannot linger in the past… It’s time for fresh meat… ;)