Theeuro

Contact

Greetings

I am JR. I live in the EU. My favorite country is that of my wife's birthplace, the Netherlands.

Wikipedian

The primary reason that I became a ‘Wikipedian’ was the result of one of my professional goals set forth by my superior in my place of work. That goal was to educate those living outside the EU in matters concerning the single currency of the European Monetary Union- the euro.

Please note the following:

This user is a member of the Numismatics WikiProject, a WikiProject which aims to expand coverage of numismatics on Wikipedia. Please feel free to join.

You will find that I am serious about providing the most accurate information possible about the euro currency on Wikipedia. To that end, I have updated several articles with some very (I think) helpful information.

Slow Growth

Since becoming a Wikipedian and finding the editing process second-hand, I am slowly conquering the monster of the new in the world if Wikipedia. I just changed my signature!!

11/2007- 1/2008: --The € - Talk 10:18, 30 November 2007 (UTC)
1/2008: The € • ^T/_C 15:55, 18 February 2008 (UTC)
2/2008-present: Cheers. The € • ^T/_C 18:58, 8 March 2008 (UTC)

Interests

The single European currency has become a passion for me in both my private and public life. It is my responsibility to forward official news and information to the European Council to be published in the Official Journal of the European Union regarding designs and release dates of the Euro. In choosing which designs are to be shared publicly, editing the descriptions and creating high-resolution images of the designs for public release on a nearly daily basis, it is safe to say that I have my finger on the pulse of the Euro.
I have created a personal website in America about the Euro!
Please visit The Euro- Information Website for more information on the single currency of the European Monetary Union.

The Euro

Since technically, I am able to release any new design information exactly 1 hour after 1 day before the official announcement, the Wikipedia community as a whole can benefit from my unique position. The time frame sounds very confusing and it will surprise you to know that it took 3 months of nearly constant debate to finalize.
Ah, the EU... continent of red-tape!
Of course that is in jest. I love the European Union and what it represents. Despite the problems that have ensued since the introduction of the ECU in 1999, the Euro today is a sign of prosperity. Most importantly, it is a sign of peace. It means that there can not be another war within the continent ever again.
The president of the ECB once said that adopting the Euro is like adopting a permanent and lasting peace. The speech that this quote is from hangs framed on a wall in my office. I am very proud of the work I do.

Personal

Supposedly I am what those in America might term as an 'egghead'. It took about 4 months of self- examination before I came to the harsh realisation that it is true. The moment came to me when my wife and I were 'relaxing' at the beach and I began to examine our differing ideas on relaxation. For example, my wife's idea of a relaxing vacation is to sit on the beach all day long, pausing the suntanning activity for an irregular and unpredictable 'dip in the sea'. At the same location, I would be unable to have any sort of relaxation without my trusted laptop and at least one handy charged and at the ready (what we call a 'ready handy').

There are simply too many things to do, too many articles to read and entirely too many thoughts to process in the already short 16 hours of my waking day to sit and do nothing. My wife often tells me that I'll work myself into an early grave if I continue with my activities and not include rest and relaxation in my life. But I have to say that it is working on my computer that brings me to true relaxation. Otherwise I'm anxious about who might have emailed me, which hockey team is in the playoffs, where the best direction to plant bamboo in the yard is, what new Java applications have just been uploaded to the internet, etc. etc. etc...

I guess my personality is such that I believe that it is not 'idle hands' but an idle mind that becomes the devil's plaything.

Among my hobbies are computers, software, code- writing, American football (Pittsburgh Steelers- rah, rah, rah!!), American hockey (Pittsburgh Penguins- rah, rah, rah!!), American baseball (Red Sox- rah, rah, rah!!), languages (I speak 8 languages and am learning 4 more), cultural anthropology, European politics, American politics, Chinese culture, history and language, ecology and bamboo.

The following television programs have caught my fancy just recently: Journeyman (TV series), Weeds and Stargate_SG-1. I very often watch: ROME (BBC), Planet Earth (BBC) and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (Cartoon Network).

Some of my favorite films are The Last Emperor, The Matrix, The Lord of the Rings, Ratatouille, Hero and Lilo & Stitch

My favorite book is 1421: The Year China Discovered America. Also Fatherland and From Emperor to Citizen.

For music, I like The Killers, The Clarks, Lenny Kravitz, The Beatles and my favorite of all time and space... U2. Bono, I think, is a hero of humanity.

Some interesting facts:

My life began in Pittsburgh, but English was not my first language, German was.
On a daily basis, I'm most likely to speak French.
At the time of this writing, it will be 77 days until I celebrate the 12^th anniversary of my 23^rd birthday.
My wife and I have no children, but when we do, they will not know their grand-fathers.
The most common element in my house is hydrogen.
No less than fifteen lifeforms share our residence.
My wife and I:
- Share a world record.
- Are very well acquainted with Jeff Goldblum, Harry Connick, Jr. and the late Fred Rogers.
- Had our 15 minutes of fame on separate occasions but for the same reason.

Speak to me

If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, complaints, funny jokes, ironic pictures, instructions on how to propagate the Mandarin Tea Plant, a good recipe for oliebollen or speculaas, or just want to send a greeting, please wrap them up in the form of an email (of course I put the wrong email address there since day 1. The email address that is there now is correct!).
Or you can just put it in the talk page!!

––Theeuro 10:39, 9 April 2007 (UTC)

My first Barnstar!!

		The Barnstar of Diligence
		For your constant contribution to the euro topics! Miguel.mateo (talk) 13:15, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

This user is a member of the Numismatics WikiProject, a WikiProject which aims to expand coverage of numismatics on Wikipedia. Please feel free to join.