Thursday, December 14, 2006

Performancing 1.3.5 for Blogger Beta

Moved to Blogger Beta and am testing my Performancing on my Blogger Beta account. Bisa nggak ya?





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Monday, December 11, 2006

Hari-hari Midori


Seneng deh baca manga atau nonton anime yang ceritanya kehidupan percintaan anak muda (sok tua beneur). Biasanya memang tokohnya usia sekolah sih, bahkan usia kuliah pun kayaknya jarang...atau malah nggak ada? Eniwey, cerita2 itu ringan (ada juga sih yg berat), bikin gw senyum dan teringat masa2 abegong yang indah dulu, dan bikin berkhayal sejenak betapa indahnya kalo hidup ini sesederhana itu... :-p Dan, setting keseharian hidup di Jepang, bikin gw nostalgia dan relive gimana rasanya berada di sana... yg gw bayangin sih udara sejuk musim gugur yang indah, daun2 berwarna-warni...

Yang terakhir gw ikutin ceritanya adalah anime Hari-hari Midori, versi Inggrisnya berjudul Midori Days, versi aslinya dalam bahasa Jepang berjudul 「美鳥の日々」 (baca: Midori no hibi), yang diangkat dari serial manga. Seperti cerita2 Jepun lainnya, ide ceritanya rada gila & ngga masuk akal. Tapi justru di situlah daya tarik cerita2 di komik dan animasi Jepun.

Ceritanya seorang anak SMP bernama Seiji, yang dikenal di sekolahnya sebagai pembuat onar & tukang berkelahi, suatu hari bangun tidur dan tangan kanannya sudah berubah jadi seorang anak perempuan berukuran mini. Ternyata anak perempuan itu adalah Midori, teman satu sekolah Seiji yang sudah lama naksir Seiji diam2. Entah kenapa bisa kejadian kayak gitu, namanya juga imajinasi pengarangnya. Yang jelas, sejak saat itu Midori yang aslinya pendiam jadi anak periang sebagai tangan kanan Seiji (dalam arti yang sebenarnya).



Sejak jadi tangan kanan Seiji, Midori jadi melihat sisi Seiji yang lain. Ternyata Seiji nggak seperti yang dikira orang lain, dia baik dan mau berkorban untuk temannya. Cerita ini juga lucu bin konyol, bisa bikin gw 'n my sisters ketawa abis2an saking gelinya. Dari kesulitan mereka mandi (sama2 malu keliatan), usaha Seiji menyembunyikan kenyataan tentang tangan kanannya dari semua orang, Midori yang berusaha nolong Seiji yang dihukum guru olah raganya yang sentimen, Seiji yang terpaksa ke toko anime figurines tempatnya para otaku untuk mbeliin baju buat Midori,...

Yang lucu juga adalah kenyataan bahwa Seiji punya kakak perempuan yang 'reman' abis. Jago berantem dan sering 'menganiaya' Seiji. Kakaknya ini punya geng cowok2 bermotor, yang dia ajak ke onsen (pemandian mata air panas) dan mereka minum2 sampe pada mabok. Besok paginya Seiji bangun, mereka udah ngga ada. Kena ngebayarin deh... BTW, kakaknya inilah yang pertama tau tentang Midori yang ada di tangan kanan Seiji.


Buat yang suka cerita ini juga, Opening & Ending Songs dari anime ini bisa di-donlod di sini:
Buat Faris, daripada gw ngaplod ngabisin jatah pemakaian internet gw atau bikin gw kena charge tambahan (hehe...), mendingan lo donlod aja dari link2 itu ya... :-) Jadi langganan cable TV gak?

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Aikido

Aikido is a fully defensive Japanese martial art. It doesn't have an attack form. We do not kick, punch, or in any other manner, attempt to hurt our opponent. All the waza (techniques) are done using the attacker's force. The greater force the attacker have against us, the greater the force would go back to him/her.

Aikido doesn't only have techniques in standing position, but also in sitting position. When I see a suwari waza (techniques in sitting position), I often imagine Japan in samurai and shogunate time. People might be attacked when they were sitting--maybe in their homes, or in a teahouse, or in a bath house...

Aikido uses the attacker's force by sending the force back and sending the attacker off balance. When the attacker falls down we pin him down but we don't kick, punch or hit him.

A writing by Charlie Badenhop below explains about the meaning of aikido.

The meaning of Aikido:

合 "Ai" To gather or harmonize.

気 "Ki" Universal life force/energy.

This is the energy that we share with nature and all living beings.

道 "Do" An artful path of discovery.



"Aikido" An artful path of discovering how to gather and harmonize the energy of the universe.

When we sense and move with the energy that is manifesting throughout the universe we find that we have a greater ability to live a life that is healthy and fulfilling.

"Ki"

In Aikido we believe that all human beings utilize and share a common energy source (ki) that helps to run and maintain our environment as well as our individual human systems. We believe that since we all share a common energy source, that in some important way we are all truly members of the same family, and truly sharing our lives with all of nature. We do not have an attack form in Aikido, because attacking an opponent would be like attacking a family member that you love. Attacking an opponent would also be like attempting to damage the flow of Universal energy in the world, and such acts are likely to have many far reaching consequences.

In the Japanese language words that use the concept of "ki" are common.

"Gen-ki" means "root energy" or one's "personal health".

"Ten-ki" relates to "heavenly energy" or "the weather".

"Hon-ki" relates to "original energy" or "the truth".

"Yuu-ki" relates to "brave energy" or "courage".

"Ki o tsukete" means "attach your energy to what you are doing, or "be careful".

The origin of ki?

Where does ki originate from? In Aikido the answer is poetic in nature rather than scientific. It is suggested that ki was "born" at the same instant as the rest of the universe, and that we are all born from the ki of the universe. Ki is considered to be an energy that we all have equal access to. It is an energy that courses through our system if we do not restrict it. In Aikido we believe that excess tension physically and emotionally, fear, hate, greed, and anger, all cut us off from the universal source of ki. Our daily practice involves working at maintaining a balanced state physically and emotionally, and indeed, practicing ways to cultivate physical and emotional balance is much of what the study of Aikido is about. In Aikido physical and emotional balance are meant to be two sides of the very same coin. Physical balance helps to engender emotional balance and health, and vice versa as well. Often in my professional work with individuals I find myself first addressing the clients' physical balance when they come wanting to resolve emotional issues, and I do the reverse as well. I often first address or explore how emotional imbalance might lead to the physical difficulties they are experiencing.

...

Means when we have physical issues, we should address our emotional balance, vice versa?

Source: The Ki of Aikido - An Oriental Concept of "Energy" "Self" and "Mind"

* * *

Buat semua teman2 di dojo PTIK yang sempat saya kenal:

Pur sensei, Dedi sensei, mas Adi, mas Andi, Uswan, Isya, Cuncun, Artul, Tari, mas Pur,... juga yang cuma ketemu sebentar kayak mas Yarring (mungkin orangnya udh lupa sama saya).

Oya, tidak melupakan Hasnul sensei :-) kalo yg ini sih masih ketemu sekali2...

Deki - temen sejak kecil, temen setia termasuk selama latian aikido bareng... selalu menjemput mengantar diriku (karena gw bukan jelangkung yang tak dijemput tak diantar)

Pur sensei yang selalu memberi semangat agar rajin latihan...

Uswan yang selalu meng-encourage gw untuk cari "celah" yang pas waktu zagikokyuho... dan menggemari badge Powerpuff Girls gw..

Isya yang janji nraktir tapi tak pernah dipenuhi ;-p

BTW, merid ga ngundang2...!

Yah pokoknya semua temen2, sensei sempai,... apa kabar semuanya? Kalau ada yang baca tulisan ini, kontak dong...





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Thursday, November 23, 2006

Quality of Life, and Happiness

How do you measure your happiness? To me it's about enjoying the process. Not preoccupied by reaching the goal and forgetting to enjoy our life with all the people around us.



I remember a conversation with an old friend, which again he stated on our phone conversation last night. He moved from the bustling Jakarta to a smaller town, Banjarmasin. His job assignment in Banjarmasin was supposed to be for 2 years but due to many factors, it was extended and he's been living there for more than 2 years now.



The last time we finally met again, he told me that now he intended to stay there, no intention to go back living in Jakarta. He was once offered a better career back in the company's headquarter in Jakarta, but he rejected it. He told me, he got something very invaluable in his life now that he wouldn't be able to have if he worked and lived in Jakarta--a good quality of life.



What does he mean? Let me retold his "story". Since he now lives in a small city, it takes only a few minutes to go to work. No traffic jams. So he doesn't have to leave home very early like Jakarta citizens do. That results an "extra" time he has with his family in the morning. He can bathe his son and play with him in the morning before leaving for work. "That kind of chance would be very expensive if I lived and worked in Jakarta," he said. I agreed.



Unlike the "slaves" in Jakarta who spend long hours working overtime, my friend goes home from work in reasonable hours. So again he has time to be with his family. He is happy with his life.



Jakarta conditions us to have less and less time for our family, social, and personal lives. Capitalism makes companies make people work almost like slaves, with too much work load, too close deadlines. As if those aren't enough, the horrible traffic drained the rest of the remaining energy that when people get home they have too little time and energy for their family and for their own selves.



Listening to my friend telling how his life was now with glowing expression, made me think. I remember my other friend who's been working VERY hard for several years. For her, going home very late at night is normal. And she only has FIVE days of vacation in a year! That's slavery. But since she was still single, she had chosen to stay with the firm. The pay is big and she needs it to support her family. She's smart, determined, and a real hardworker. But now she has a child she has to leave for 12 or more hours a day. Did she miss the moments as her child grows? I just hope you are always happy Nu :-)



I once read someone told us to stop and look around for a while. Don't run through your life otherwise you will miss many things. It's like what Pak Zuki posted on his blog, from an article written by Arvan Pradiansyah on Republika newspaper:



Di kantor upaya pencapaian target sering membuat saya kehilangan waktu untuk bersosialisasi dan menjalin hubungan dengan para kolega.



Di rumah target-target ini sering membuat kita menomorduakan hubungan yang akrab dengan anggota keluarga. Kita kehilangan saat-saat berharga dengan pasangan dan anak-anak.



Tujuan kita hidup adalah mencari kebahagiaan. Tapi banyak orang yang
mengatakan begini, ''Saya baru bahagia kalau berhasil mencapai
target.''

Free translation:



At work, efforts to reach a target often makes me lose time to socialize and make relations with the colleagues.



At home these targets often makes us put the intimate relationship with family members in second place. We lose precious moments with our spouse and children.



Our life objective is to find happiness. But many people say, "I will be happy if I succeed reaching my target."




Anda takkan pernah bahagia karena begitu target tahun ini tercapai,
target tahun depan sudah siap mengejar Anda, bahkan dalam jumlah yang
jauh lebih besar. Kalau saja target tersebut bisa berbicara, inilah
yang akan ia katakan kepada Anda ''Kejarlah Daku, Kau Kukejar!''

Freely translated:

You will never be happy because when this year's target is reached, next year's target is ready to keep you running.



It reminds me of a book I read, entitled "Be Happy." The important thing I learn from the book is this sentence: "If you want to be happy, be happy NOW." There is a caricature: a gravesstone written: Here buried a person who will be happy tomorrow.



Again, to me being happy means enjoying the process. So, don't give so many conditions for yourself to be happy. Be happy RIGHT NOW! :)



Link





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Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Japanese Encoding Support for Non-Japanese Mobiles



For exchanging emails with my friends and family in Japan I use my built-in email client on my mobile phone, since my Japan-based friends use their mobile phone (push) email address. Here in Indonesia as far as I know we haven't had such a service from our network providers here (but it must be coming soon for new mobile phones are ready with push emailfeature).

Apparently there are issues arise:

  1. I cannot read emails sent from Japanese mobile phones due to the "unknown format". It has to be something to do with the character encoding.

  2. Although many Japanese mobile phones can read my email messages, some phones cannot read them (invalid message). It must be, again, the character encoding issue.

Looking for tools for Japanese character support for Indonesian mobile messaging is difficult. I asked the phone maker and they cannot accommodate it. My phone only supports English/Western and Chinese inputs. It doesn't help. I then found a mobile email client software called iCJKMail, which supports Chinese, Japanese, and Korean character encoding. It is made generic to support many mobile phone brands. And it works well on my phone. It also supports multiple identities and SSL, which my phone's built-in email client software doesn't (well it does but it won't allow me to access Gmail)!

iCJKMail uses registration key and requires you to pay for subscription. I subscribed to the Japanese version and pay less than US$5 every month.

Although so far it can only read those encodings (no inputs yet), I found it very useful. Now I can read emails my family and friends send from their Japanese mobile phones, and the usually incompatible Japanese phones can recognize emails I sent using iCJKMail. I can also download picture attachments, although cannot attach any yet. With iCJKMail now emailing them is almost as live as SMS, and it's pretty satisfying considering the character encoding and wireless technology differences between Indonesia and Japan. Besides, since I subscribed to iCJKMail, they've been doing updates, bug fixes, and adding new features.

There is another workaround for sending an email to a Japanese phone so it is recognized by the incompatible phones. I must insert special characters that are available for the Chinese input on my phone. I usually use them to create at least one emoticon, such as: ♪(^▽^)/ or (☆_☆)
(I wrote those using Japanese IME for Windows) so it changed the encoding to Chinese, which apparently is supported by those Japanese phones. But for viewing Japanese encoded emails, I can only use iCJKMail.

Sometimes when the connection is not good, accessing mailbox or sending emails using email client software (built-in or iCJKMail) takes so long it results in time-out. I tried sending emails as MMS messages. When inserting text, I must remember to insert those special characters, otherwise my message will result as an invalid message on the incompatible Japanese phones. MMS supports delivery and read reports--it's good to know my message has arrived and been read. But my MMS messages never arrived satisfactorily because I got the report that the photo cannot be viewed.

So again, using the built-in email client software plus the special characters, or just using iCJKMail to type and view messages is the best workaround I found so far.

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Firefox Blogging Add-on



Just upgraded my Firefox to version 2.0, and installed a blogging add-on called Performancing. This is the first time I'm using it, I want to test it. In the editor there is no menu/icon to change the font style. Somehow I lost the Title field on my Blogger's text editor--whenever I'm writing a post, there is no title field, so my posts have no title. There was once, but at some point in time it's gone. I don't know why and haven't tried to find out why. Or maybe since I changed the template (the pink one). I removed my old blog (which had titles) and created a new one using the pink template, and it had no title field.

OK it's getting late, gotta go now.

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WORLD OF MUSIC, ARTS, AND DANCE

WORLD OF MUSIC, ARTS, AND DANCE


When I was in Singapore last 2006, I should've been to the WOMAD festival at Fort Canning Park.
I wanted to go to WOMAD in the evening one day before our departure from Singapore. But we spent our energy during the day for a day-trip to Singapore Zoo. It was pretty far from where we stayed. We explored the zoo, which is located near a reservoir. By the time we got back we were too tired to spend the evening at WOMAD.



Festivals in the outdoors, and in the evening, is interesting. And world music, arts, and dance are best enjoyed live. I used to go to music concerts and be up-to-date with arts festivals and events. But not today. Maybe it's the effect of the traffic that's getting worse and me who's getting older? :-p Anyway there are so many things now that such things as going to music concerts or having a full body treatment (used to do it with girl friends) is almost impossible. We're all now occupied with other things.



Many people don't like (or maybe even hate) world music. I think world music is interesting, especially when enjoyed live. I might get bored if I listen to it for an hour from a CD, for example. That's why many times I spent some time browsing for world music CDs but never did buy any. Enjoying the performace live is different. The music feels more exotic and alive, affecting the atmosphere.


Image courtesy of saharadja.net

I remembered watching a live performance of Saharadja in Bali. Their music is a mixture of world/ethnic music, classical, and jazz. (You can listen to a few of their music clips on their official site.) You can book them to perform for your party. I think it will be great to have them perform in outdoor parties and events. As far as I know they only perform by reservation, and they only sell their CDs on the spot when they perform. Got one of the CDs.

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

The sun. One of the sources of life on earth. Can't live without the sunshine. The sun had once for a few years made my skinny body dark (not in a good way), my hair dry, my face invaded by zits (according to my dermatologist, I was supposed to avoid direct sun exposure to my face skin). When I see a photo of me from a few years ago, all I say is "Poor girl... She was so skinny and her skin dirty." hehehe...

Now after years of "less sun exposure" since starting office life, I feel I don't have enough sunshine. I need the early morning and late afternoon sunshine on me.

  1. About a couple of months ago I heard from a professional acquaintance from France that in Europe when they only get so little sunshine, many people feel unhealthy, no spirit. Sunshine does bring us good in our body, mind and soul.
  2. From a conversation about health, I heard that elderly people must be exposed to sunshine everyday in the morning. It means, when we get old, we need sunshine even more. It also means that sunshine does help us keep our health.
I haven't searched for a scientific proof but even so I believe that sunshine is a source of life, a source of energy. Just put on a sunblock and go outside. Lately I need to get out for a while to feel the sunshine. I found out 2 different persons at work sometimes go outside to the building complex. One told me he needed to take a walk, and the other just need to feel the outdoors and refresh himself.

Lack of sun exposure could be one of the causes of "yellow babies". Today's parents do not have enough of sun exposure.

  1. Today's "using as few workers as possible and give them as much work as possible" trend makes people work long hours.
  2. Horrible Jakarta traffic. Jakarta workers take long hours on the road and traffic jams. If they drive manual cars, it takes almost 100% of the driving time to keep the clutch pedal down (because almost every street is too crowded).

Thus the lack of sun exposure.
Also of time & energy for family, social and personal lives.

Saturday, October 14, 2006

Ramadhan.

Tapi berita di TV sore ini di beberapa tempat terjadi vandalisme. Orang-orang ngamuk.

Kalo kedengeran sinetron "berkumandang", isinya orang marah-marah, teriak-teriak.
What's happening with Indonesian people? When I was a kid I thought (and was taught) that Indonesians are friendly and kind people. Gotong royong. Toleransi. Now it's as if all that were just b*llsh*t / e* kebo.

Banyak orang udah apatis sama pemerintah. Dan keliatan, percuma mengharapkan pemerintah turun tangan membantu rakyat--yang sudah memberikan mandat kepada mereka--untuk meringankan & mengatasi masalah yang dihadapi. Segala masalah akhirnya harus diatasi secara swadaya masyarakat maupun oleh lembaga2 swasta termasuk NGO.

Management panik/pemadam kebakaran (minjem istilah). Contoh masalah mudik lebaran. Setiap mendekati musim mudik, terjadi kehebohan bagaimana mengatasi arus mudik yang padat. Padahal itu terjadi setiap tahun, tapi kok puluhan tahun nggak pernah ada jalan keluarnya? Contoh lain masalah musim kemarau. Di beberapa tempat yang sering kekeringan sehingga sulit bagi penduduk untuk mendapatkan air. Pemerintah kok nggak berbuat apa2 ya? Pemerintah nggak bikin infrastruktur untuk mengatasi masalah itu, sehingga setiap kemarau selalu terjadi masalah kekeringan & kesulitan air. Rakyat harus jalan jauh panas2 untuk mendapatkan air, atau harus rebutan air...

Apa gunanya ya ada pemerintah? Kayaknya hanya untuk sugesti mental supaya keadaan relatif stabil. Yg penting organization chart terisi. Kalau kosong kan pasti terjadi riot.

Duh kok malem2 mikirin ginian. Get a life, Zee!

Monday, August 28, 2006

I didn't explore much in this visit. After the class I went mainly for dinner. Friday, we just walked around the area, to Raffles Hotel. One place of interest in Singapore. A very expensive hotel with British colonial architecture.

















But on weekends I went to places like the Bird Park, and last weekend the zoo. It's an interesting
place. They have polar bears and also penguins. I saw kangaroos and lemurs. I touched and stroke a lemur, it was cute, and its fur was soft.

We spent the day there walking. Had lunch there and continued the walk because there were still animals we hadn't seen. I was surprised to see penguins in Singapore - first at Jurong Bird Park, and then at the zoo. I thought only the Japanese who brought and keep penguins in Osaka Aquarium are the crazy ones...

I wanted to go to WOMAD the evening, but we left the zoo tired and still had to move our bags to another hotel (yes, it was again on personal account). I might be crazy to be thinking of dragging our stuff and going by MRT. So maybe it was a good thing that the concierge who helped us with the bags just carried them outside to a taxi. He expected a tip, which I found unusual in Singapore.

So we checked in at Robertson Quay Hotel, a budget hotel just beside the Singapore River, not far from Clarke Quay. It was our second time staying there. The room is small and the shower room is too small but since the hotel rate is relatively cheap, that's what we got. (Sadly, if we convert the rate to our currency we could afford a 4- or 5-star hotel in Bandung.)
We ended up not going to WOMAD. Since the ticket was not cheap for us, it was not worth going when we had only a little energy left. I'm not likely to go to night events in Jakarta. Traffic and safety/security issues if going home very late at night, especially by public transportation. Too bad, because I like arts events. &&@#^!@%*# In Singapore I feel free to go almost anywhere anytime with convenient public transport and safety/security in most places. Now back to real life with many limitations. We went back to Jakarta Sunday afternoon. And today I've been in a terrible traffic jam again, as if this city was saying "Welcome back!" to me. I don't smile nor swear - there's no use.















Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Our airplane arrived at Changi Airport at about 1am - so it was already Saturday, August 19. And as we had already booked in advance, which was really difficult to get a budget hotel for the 2 nights, we took a ride to the budget hotel in Geylang area. I know, it's a red light district. I wasn't so worried since I don't feel unsafe.

I was excited when were entering the street: first I saw a lady-boy, then a few women, all of them with distracting makeup and clothes that obviously showed everybody who or what they were. I felt like taking my camera right then to take some shots of them, but I was tired and I wasn't sure if it was OK for them.
So when the car had stopped we just got our bags, paid for the ride, and went to the hotel's reception counter. It was Hotel 81 Geylang. We saw the no-smoking notification there saying that smoking was prohibited in the hotel premises. When we entered our room, it smelled smoke! I was too sleepy to complain and move to another room.

The weekend began. Went to Little India, ate at Tekka Center - we only had very little Singapore currency, and was surprised that we spent less than S$10 total for our meal for two. Out of curiosity I converted it with our currency and unfortunately it's still considered expensive IF we compare eating at the same kind of place/traditional market bldg in our city. We went to Mustafa Center to get something.

We visited Jurong Bird Park and watched the falcon show (wow, those birds were so great). We also saw flamingos, pelicans,...

We were so tired then, and we had an appointment for the dinner with D's boss (oh). So I didn't know until later that we missed the nocturnal birds area where they make the day dark as night so the birds are awake and we can see them flying, hunting for food, and hear them making sounds.

It was a relief that after 2 nights in the small hotel room in a red light district, and dragging our luggage to the MRT station, down and up the stairs, we finally arrived at a much better hotel. Spacious room with soft fragrance we smelled as we entered the room. Of course this is because starting Sunday I'm on company account so I'm staying at this hotel. What a relief.

Our room window faces Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay, and we can also see the Merlion statue further away. It's especially nice at night. We always leave the curtains open. It's very beautiful when the curtains are open and we turn off all lights in the room.


Swissotel the Stamford. Direct access to Raffles City mall, and just above the City Hall MRT station - an interchange station so it's even a double convenience. The downside is, we have to pay extra S$20 per person per day to use the gym and spa. Silly. So we didn't use the gym/spa.

Monday (Aug 21)
Had dinner at Bugis Junction, then saw a movie, The Breakup, starting 9.20pm. Back at the hotel around 11.30pm, met up with my cousin from KL who was here just to pick up his sister in law at the airport then would ride back to KL.


Tuesday (Aug 22)

Dinner with D's ex-colleagues. They're now working in Singapore. There were 8 of us plus a 3-year-old boy. Had fun chit-chatting.


Wednesday (today - Aug 23)

Dinner with James & Elaine at Newton Circus/Food Centre. It's a place with many food counters with many seafood and some Malay, Indian, etc. It's an open place with many tables outside (not under the roof). Nice place, but so many people. Always difficult to find a place to sit at meal times in Singapore. Back from there we (me & D) just stopped by at Ben&Jerry's to enjoy a little ice cream while watching the water fountain...

Friday, August 18, 2006

Yesterday, August 17, was the commemoration of the independece day. In residential areas were fun games for everyone. It's our custom to hold fun games when August 17 approches, and the big event will be on the day of August 17. Schools and companies hold a flag-raising ceremony followed with fun games. Too bad I didn't have any pictures now.

Gue ngga kmana-mana kemaren. The international geosciences conference & exhibition finished 2 days ago, August 16, 2006. And as always, the last day was the busiest one, as we had to make sure all scores for the technical sessions were entered. Determening a winner is not that easy. We run a normalisation to see if any of the judges are too generous or too stingy.

The winners: Best Professional Oral Presentation: ConocoPhillips, Best Student Oral Presentation: ITB (Institut Teknologi Bandung), and Best Poster Presentation: ITB.

Friday, August 11, 2006

Is it the effect of staying & working late in the office 3 days in a row? I know I started to have lack of sleep. I couldn't hardly get up from the couch last night just to move in to my bed room. I didn't have enough energy to take a shower, not even to keep my eyes open. And this morning I didn't have the spirit to dress up quickly and go to work. And I said something that triggered my dad to anger--which I don't understand where I was wrong. It's been a mystery for years that me & my siblings never understand. And when he's mad, whatever we say is wrong. Saying anything is considered rude. And looking at him is considered rude. Whereas we think that looking at someone we talk to or talking to us means we respect him/her. Long ago when we are younger our parents said, theoritically, that we may express our opinions. But in practice we found that it's considered rude. So, what to do? We know they don't want us to express our opinion, that we must shut up and not say a word whatever we have in mind when we have an argument. So that shouldn't be called "argument" as we are not allowed to give an argument.

Actually this hasn't happened for a long while. For a long while our relationship is more or less peaceful. In process of moving out. In "peaceful" situation I'm not rushing it. But in situations like this (which used to happen now and then) I wish I lived far away from them so when we meet what we have is only the good things. But when we are "in peace" sometimes I don't want to leave them alone. The house would be empty. Well, my sister is still there but as soon as she finished school and get a job, she won't be home every day. My retired dad might feel lonely day to day, only late afternoon or early evening mom went back from work. But she has to leave for work again early in the morning.

I'm so sleepy and today after work I might stay late again for the conference. It will be on next weekdays, and the week after I will be on a business trip. Tomorrow is Saturday and I really, really hope that I can get some rest! And spa would be nice...

Thursday, July 20, 2006

Nah ini foto waktu kita mo nyanyi di Petro Cup. Setelah sekian lama, akhirnya gw "terjun" lagi ke panggung (ta'ela...). Walopun kayaknya latiannya cu-mef (cukup mefets), kurang mateng. Sangat disayangkan, Juara Bertahan yang menang 2x berturut-turut ternyata tahun ini lolos babak penyisihan pun enggak. Yang jelas memang banyak yang heran. Walopun gw memang melihat ada "keanehan" pada sound system saat itu. Nggak sama dengan waktu test sound sebelum lomba dimulai. Kenapa tiba2 volume musiknya jadi keras sekali sehingga para vokalis harus bekerja extra mengerahkan powernya untuk mengimbangi kerasnya volume suara musik? Apakah ada kecurangan? God knows. Bahkan group lain yang biasanya dianggap potential competitor gak lolos juga.

Kalau memang ada kecurangan, itu memang 'biasa'. Dunia memang nggak adil. Itulah gunanya ada surga & neraka. Itu kata-kata dari temen gw Dewi, mengutip kata-kata Razi suaminya. Dan kalimat itu bener2 inspiring buat gw. Sangat membantu gw untuk berlapang dada di saat2 gw merasa dunia ini gak adil. Itu mengingatkan gw bahwa keadilan tetap akan ditegakkan.


Hayooo...ada yang naksir sama salah satu di foto ini? Hubungi gw aja buat mastiin yang mana yang masih available, yang mana "single and looking", "single and desperate", "married but desperate", dst. Ha ha ha...

Sebenernya gw pingin bikin quiz:
"Dari ke-10 orang di foto ini, berapa orang yang single, & yang mana aja?"
Kalo jawabannya bener DAN yang menjawab adalah orang single, gw kasih nama & no. telp dari orang2 yang single di foto itu. Penting banget gak seh? He he he...
Thinking about myself...
Am I a SPOF in this organization?

Maybe. Considering how paranoid they are when I'm not here.
Maybe not. Considering the way they've been treating me.

Been thinking for too long to go back to where I always want to be. But I'm so far behind, need to catch up. Pingin ngambil sekolah design yang bagus - yang aku liat di sini Lasalle. Tapi ternyata...mehi bengi - mahal banget! Bahkan dengan keadaan yang sekarang (udah punya uang sendiri, gak minta lagi sama ortu), belom mampu. Can't afford it. Too expensive.

Dulu waktu masih sekolah, I always reminded myself that I have to earn my own money. Nggak mau terus2an minta sama ortu, terutama kalo cuma buat kesenangan sendiri. Dulu kalo mau nonton aja uang dihemat supaya bisa pergi ke bioskop. Kalo minta lagi sih mestinya dikasih juga, tapi gw bukan tipe peminta-minta. Malu sama diri sendiri. Masa' me-manage uang bulanan gak bisa? Selama sekolah (SMP~kuliah: +/- 11 tahun), ada 2x keadaan di mana gw terpaksa minta uang saku lagi sama ortu sebelum abis bulan. Ugh, rasanya sebel banget. Ngga enak sama ortu & sebel sama diri sendiri. Itu berarti gw gagal me-manage uang. Waktu timbul ketertarikan untuk mengeksplor banyak hal seperti fotografi, jalan2, design,... gw tau perlu modal 'lebih' dari uang saku. Makanya gw bertekad harus bisa menghasilkan uang sehingga untuk pengeluaran2 "pribadi" itu gw bisa biayain diri sendiri.

Waktu kuliah sempet lah dapet tambahan dikit dari jualan tas & aksesori. Lumayan. Setelah dapet kerja, syukurlah gue bisa nabung. Dan gw udah bisa ikutan manga school yang mahal baik uang semester maupun peralatan gambarnya. Gw biayai diri gw sendiri. Seneng rasanya ngga minta sama ortu, malah bisa nraktir ortu :) Gw bisa ikut kegiatan2 di luar kantor kayak aikido, belajar bahasa Jepang, manga school, yoga, dll. Berbekal kamera lama bokap, Nikkormat, gw bisa mulai motret lagi (yang dulu gw urungkan sejak harga film & biaya cuci-cetak mahal). Gw bahkan berhasil nabung utk beli kamera digital SLR, dan jalan-jalan ke Jepang! Jalan2nya sih gaya "melarat", alias nginep di tempat murah2, makan gak jelas, hehehe... tapi gw seneng banget. (Liat entry gw sebelumnya tentang jalan2 ke Jepang.)

Sekarang blm kesampean belajar design. Itu padahal minat gw pas lulus kuliah. Skripsi gw itu bikin multimedia. Abis lulus gw belajar multimedia sendiri (maklum masih nganggur & banyak waktu). Tapi mungkin Tuhan menakdirkan gw ternyata nggak bekerja di bidang itu, melainkan di industri perminyakan. Gw melakukan apa yang harus dilakukan, gw senang dengan suasana kerja, sampai akhirnya sekarang....... am I a SPOF or not?

Should I try harder so I can get the skill I need in the expensive school and then I can start doing something new I really enjoy (while still earning money)? Kayaknya dari tadi gw UUD gitu ya? Memangnya dikira gw bertahan kerja buat apa? Jelas buat uang. Karir, enggak. Kenapa uang? Karena si benda kurangajar itulah yang bisa membantu gw: jalan2, motret, bantuin ortu & adiks gw, merawat diri dan memanjakan diri,... (walopun sekarang waktunya susah.) Apa itu salah?

Friday, June 23, 2006

Kemaren Jakarata ulang tahun.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY JAKARTA.

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Ternyata nggak seperti yang dicurigai. Jadi, despite my gaining weight within these last couple of weeks, gue nggak 'nggotong' calon bayi. Semuanya masuk ke badan gue! Ngek. Gue sebenernya bukan cemas pada beratnya, karena gue tipe orang yang udah membuktikan bahwa sehat dan tidak gemuk bukan berarti berat badan rendah -- walopun badan gak gede tapi kalo olah raga, daging jadi otot, pasti badan jadi lebih berat daripada orang yang gede badannya sama tapi nggak punya otot. Hehe... Have you touched/pinched someone and felt their muscles? Can you tell if they work out or not?

Akhir2 ini gue udah bolong2 olah raga. Selera makan lagi bagus. Pertanda gawat. Tapi 2 hari ini selera makan udah mulai menurun, mudah2an cepet balik jadi males makan lagi deh, hahaha... Cuma masalahnya ada maag seh, jadi kalo gak makan atau telat makan, sakit deh lambungnya.

Trus, gue makin males ngelakuin aktivitas pulang kerja 'gara-gara' si Taqi yang lutu itu! Kalo sehari gue pulang malem, besoknya gue beraaat banget untuk pulang malem lagi. Rasanya pingin ada di rumah masih sore, masih ada matahari, main sama Taqi, dan duduk2 di living room
ngobrol sama bokap nyokap dan adik2 gue. Didi aja udah bilang ke Taqi bahwa dia ngerebut gue, hihihi... Gue lagi suka main sama cowok lain nih :)

Pernah ada yang bilang (entah nyokap atau.. yap, temen gue kali ya), "Bikin ndiri dong." Tapi gue bilang kalo anak ndiri pasti nggak seenak anak orang :) Maksudnya, kena repot2nya juga, hehe... Apalagi jadi emaknya kan paling repot (^3^). Rani aja sekarang mau makan & mandi aja susah banget dapet waktunya! Gile, itu cuma untuk kebutuhan pokok lho! Udah nyaris impossible ngerjain yang lain2. Boro2 ngurus diri sendiri deh... Untungnya di rumah banyak orang, jadi bisa titip2 gantian. Dan kadang2 nyokap minta gue untuk ngajak Rani jalan2, biar dia nggak suntuk, sementara Taqi ditemenin nyokap. Oh bayi, kamu begitu lutu tapi begitu ngerepotin. Pagi2 gue sering ngeliat Rani tidur dengan tampang letih, rambut berantakan, posisi duduk sambil mangku Taqi. Itu pasti semaleman dia nggak bisa tidur... Tapi emang bener sih, kalo pulang kerja capek2 gitu trus ngeliat Taqi rasanya lupa sama capeknya. Tapi mungkin karena gue ngga punya obligasi untuk mendedikasikan diri padanya ya... Ngga tau kalo anak sendiri. Begitu dia tiba-tiba ee', mungkin langsung, "Oh no!", dan inget lagi betapa capeknya diriku? Oh he's so cute, so adorable...

Jadi inget becandaan ini: Waktu bayi belum dilahirkan & jiwanya masih di Tuhan, bayi disuruh milih pasangan suami-istri yang akan dia jadiin "orang tua" a.k.a. "korban"! :-p oh sedihnya...

*

Sementara di kantor (gue gak mau ngomongin urusan kerjaan lho, ngingetnya aja udah cape') gue baru gabung ama anak2 VG (vocal group), biar nyanyi lagi. Lumayan buat ngilangin stress. Dalam rangka Petrocup, kita latian 3x seminggu, tapi gue selama ini baru 3x ikut latian. Tau sendiri lah, selain godaan Taqi, ada juga godaan males ngebayangin pulangnya kalo gak bawa mobil. Coba di Jakarta AMAN dan transportasi umum AMAN & NYAMAN. Ada MRT yang aman dan stasiun & sekitarnya juga gak ada yang nongkrong2 gak jelas. Betapa banyaknya orang nongkrong doing nothing di sini. Sebagai penduduk Jakarta gue gak ngerasa aman & nyaman.

Ya sudahlah. Mau protes tapi buat apa, masalahnya udah terlalu kompleks, menyangkut segala aspek. Mungkin negri ini udah nyaris hopeless? Bisa gak kita outsource untuk orang2 pemerintahan? Apa kalo kayak gitu artinya dijajah? Dari segi bisnis sih enggak, kan kita bayar. Tapi apa kita mampu bayar vendor yang berkualitas? Hehe... another problem.

Jadi, udah lah. Hopeless mungkin.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Beberapa hari terakhir ini bawaannya ngantuk & selera makan lagi cukup bagus. Apalagi setelah wiken yang cukup melelahkan kemaren.

Hmmm... cemas deh. Udah lama gak yoga. Terakhir yoga bisa jadi udah bulan lalu. Tapi selama gak yoga di rumahyoga sih gue yoga sendiri, & juga ke gym. Tapi jaraknya jauh & gak teratur. Tapi sekarang jadi gak berani shoulderstand, karena cemas (baca: curiga). Yang ngerti yoga walopun dikit, pasti tau maksud gue.

Sunday, February 12, 2006


Happy Anniversary :)

2nd anniversary. Kita ngga ngadain perayaan khusus. Tapi pulang kerja, pulang ke rumah, abis menyegarkan diri, kita nyempetin makan malem di luar. Tempatnya pun nggak yang "aneh2", yang penting sama-sama. Nemu restoran mungil yang cukup "cute" dan rada romantis lah suasananya, walopun bukan fine dining. Toh kita berdua ke sana dalam "kostum" yang ngga "aneh2" juga. Restorannya kecil tapi dia pinter ngedekornya. Suasananya jadi lumayan enak buat orang beduaan. Tapi untuk tempat ngobrol ama temen (terutama buat curhat, hehe) juga enak. Jadi segmennya cukup flexible lah... Meja-mejanya melipir kaca besar dengan pemandangan ke luar, dan sepanjang kaca dihias lampu2 kecil berbentuk sulur2 yang "jatoh" dari atas. Bikin romantis suasana.

Malem itu setelah makan malem, kita dapet kado cake anniversary dari nyokap, bokap & adik gw. Taart kecil berbentuk hati :) hehehe... Thanks mom, dad, 'n sis :)

Mudah2an keluarga kami sakinah penuh ketentraman, cinta & kasih sayang, dianugrahi keturunan yang soleh & solehah, tali silaturahmi yang kuat dengan saudara2 & teman2, dianugrahi kesehatan lahir & batin, diberikan rizki yang banyak, berkah & halal, diberi usia yang berkah, kekuatan iman, kekuatan lahir & batin, kebahagiaan dan keselamatan di dunia & akhirat; dan dijauhkan dari segala malapetaka maupun marabahaya, sakit maupun penyakit, godaan maupun kejahatan baik dari dalam diri maupun dari luar; dijauhkan dari disakiti maupun menyakiti. Amin. Amin. Amin ya robbal'alamin.


Monday, January 02, 2006

My Favourite of My Favourite Vacation

I'm so thankful! I got the chance to experience a beautiful unforgettable vacation in Japan last November 2005. I was there for a month, seeing my sister and her family, making new friends, travelling to a few cities and places.

Saat-saat favorit gw adalah tgl. 7-8 November. Gue naik kereta meninggalkan Tokyo, sampe Ootsuki, kota kecil di arah barat dari Tokyo. Turun di stasiun langsung berasa beda banget. Dari stasiun Tokyo yang geda' dan ruamenya minta ampun, tau2 gw ada di stasiun kecil di kota kecil yang sepi. Pemandangan di sekitar adalah gunung2 dengan pohon2 b'daun ijo & warna-warni. Oh I love autumn!

Karena Rani & Hide blm nyampe, gw & Didi makan siang dulu di restoran di depan stasiun. Didi makan beef curry, gw makan beef stew (gw rada bosen juga cukup sering makan kare sejak cabut dari Utsunomiya ke Tokyo). Tumben juga hari itu daun2an saladnya gw makan dengan lahapnya. Apa emang enak (stewnya sih lumayan), atau gw lagi laper banget ya?

Pas gw & Didi selesai makan, Rani dan Hide udah sampe di Ootsuki. Mereka naik mobil dari Utsunomiya. Kita lanjutin perjalanan ber-4, Hide yang nyetir, menuju Yamanaka-ko di Fuji Five Lakes (Fujigoko) area. Pemandangan kota kecil, dg gunung2 di sekitar. So beautiful... made me feel happy. Alhamdulillah.

Kita jalan naik mobil Corolla-nya Okasan, dibantu GPS menuju hotel kita di Yamanaka-ko. Di tengah perjalanan, udah di Fuji Five Lakes Area, kita ngeliat ada rumah atap rumbia gitu deh, & di sekitarnya pohon2 dg daun2 merah! Kita ngga keburu2, ngga dikejar apa2, jadi kita mampir deh... Ternyata itu taman dari Fujiyoshida Museum of Local History. Tamannya bagus banget krn daun2 maple udah muerrraaahhh....!!! Subhanallah, it was so beautiful.

I took loads of pictures there. Never enough. The view was so beautiful. I really loved it. Rani & Hide jadi model favorit deh, hehehe...

Pas hari udah mulai menggelap, lampu2 di bawah di sepanjang jalan yg diapit pohon maple itu dinyalain. Indah!

Kita lanjutin perjalanan ke Yamanaka-ko. Akhirnya sampe lah di hotel kita, ファミリーロッジ・旅籠屋・山中湖 (Family Lodge Hatagoya, Yamanaka-ko). Tempat parkirnya aja udah di bawah pohon2 berdaun kuning. Autumn memang indah! Tempatnya bukan hotel sih, tipenya bed&breakfast lah. Suasana di lobby/lounge-nya hangat gitu, kayak di living room rumahan, ada teddy bearnya segala :) Kamarnya luas, ada TV, AC, meja rias, meja tambahan yg dilipat ke tembok, sofa bed buat extra bed gratis, pojok gantungan baju, shower room, ruang bertapa (alias tempat e*'). Teh panas gratis bisa diambil di lounge. Abis bersih2 kita keluar cari makan. Makin malem udara di luar makin dingin, waktu itu di luar udah 7 derajat Celcius. Kita naik mobil ngelilingin Danau Yamanaka cari tempat makan mur-mer, ngga dapet. Yg ada mahal2 (keliatan dari bentuk restorannya, ataupun papan menu yg ditaro di luar), ato tutup. Well, maklum we were on a tight budget, hehehe... Eh sempet nemu restoran kare (Japanese curry), gw & Didi turun utk ngecek (keluar dari mobil buru2 masuk resto...dingin bow) apa makanannya mengandung babi. Di sana mereka biasanya ngga berani main2, krn ada org yg alergi babi. Kalo terjadi apa2 sama org yg makan di sana, mereka bisa dituntut. Ternyata mereka dg jujur bilang makanannya mengandung babi. Ngga jadi deh kita makan di sana... Akhirnya kita ke Seven Eleven beli makanan jadi yg tinggal dipanasin pake microwave. Enaknya di Jepang, di supermarket maupun kombini (convenience store) pasti jualan makanan2 jadi yg tinggal dipanasin. Praktis.

Thank God malem itu kita tidur nyenyak. Kamarnya anget walopun di luar udara dingin buanget. Paginya kita sarapan di lounge, roti dkk dan teh/kopi. Trus kita beres, check out, dan langsung cabut ke Danau Yamanaka utk ngeliat pemandangan Gunung Fuji......

OH SO BEAUTIFUL..... Subhanallah.... Taun 2002 waktu gw ke Jepang, gw cuma liat Gn.Fuji dari Shinkansen dan dari jendela di apartemen Tomoko di Tokyo--kecil. Tapi di Yamanaka-ko inilah pertama kalinya gw ngeliat Gn.Fuji begitu gede di depan mata gw. Indah & mengerikan at the same time. Sementarai di sekitar Danau Yamanaka, daun2 berwarna-warni. Subhanallah, it was so very beautiful. And the fact that I was there with some of the people I love, it makes it even more beautiful. I was very happy then. Alhamdulillah... Segala puji bagi Allah. I wish mom, dad 'n Eggs had been there too.

Trus kita lanjut ke Danau Kawaguchi. Pemandangan G.Fuji dari sana nggak seindah di Danau Yamanaka. Di D.Kawaguchi, banyak gunung2 lainnya, jadi kurang OK gitu lho... Tapi pemandangan di sekitar danau sih tetep aja indaaaah.... :)

Abis itu kita makan siang. Udah mulai buru2 deh, krn perjalanan panjang--gw & Didi lanjut ke Kyoto, sedangkan Rani & Hide balik ke Utsunomiya. So, abis makan di resto di pinggir Danau Kawaguchi, Rani & Hide nge-drop gw & Didi di stasiun Ootsuki lagi. Gw & Didi naik kereta ke Shin Yokohama dulu, trus naik Shinkansen ke Kyoto. Rani & Hide kena macet pulang, baru sampe rumah jam 11 malem :( Sedangkan, gw & Didi nyampe Kyoto malem itu, capek, tapi... ada pengalaman tak terlupakan tentang penginapan. Kita menyusurin Kyoto di malam hari cari tempat nginep yg lain... hehehe.

Yah itu deh cerita pengalaman favorit gw di liburan kemarin. Alhamdulillah... :)