Beberapa hari kemarin saya dan Riko sedang makan di entahlah-dimana-saya-lupa. Pokoknya di tempat itu ada TV. Waktu itu ada iklan Idola Cilik 2. Anda tahu Idola Cilik 2?
Idola cilik 2 itu semacam Indonesian Idol tapi untuk anak-anak usia 7 - 12 tahun. Saya pernah sih (kayaknya) nonton 1 atau 2 kali. Dari iklannya juga, suara anak-anak ini bagus juga.
Namun saya baru sadar ada yang aneh waktu Riko komentar soal lagu-lagunya. Saya tidak tahu sih ya, secara keseluruhan gimana. Tapi di iklan itu, semua anak-anak usia 7 - 12 tahun ini menyanyikan lagu-lagu orang dewasa. Entah Ungu, atau Seventeen, atau Wonder Women-nya Mulan Jameela, seperti ini:
Back then when I was still a child, there were many kids songs. I remember Enno Lerian, Melissa, Trio Kwek-Kwek, and so on. They were singing about wicked mosquitos, or a komodo walking down the street, or dolphins, or balloons, or tukang baso.
Memang sih lagu-lagu jaman dulu kadang imajinatif dan tidak masuk akal. Tapi kapan lagi berimajinasi dan bertidak masuk akal kalau bukan waktu kecil?
Sekarang ini anak-anak menyanyikan lagu jatuh cinta atau patah hati. Well, I did have my heart broken when I was a child. But that was because I missed Sailormoon final episode or when I lost my fancy sticker.
Saya jadi agak bingung sama pikirannya produser Idola Cilik ini gimana ya?
Kenapa lagu orang dewasa yang dinyanyiin? Betul, sekarang memang tidak ada lagi lagu anak-anak yang muncul. Tapi kan bukan berarti tidak bisa menyanyikan yang lama? Rearrange kek, atau apa. Ga usah di rearrange juga gapapa kok.
Kalau niatnya mencari lagu yang lumayan sulit untuk dinyanyikan, masih ada lagu-lagunya Sherina bukan? She got two great albums back then.
Apa karena lagu-lagu seperti itu yang laku dijual di pasar?
Bagaimana soal pertimbangan psikologisnya? Saya tidak tahu sih, tapi apa tidak ada dampaknya? Bukannya seperti memaksa anak-anak ini mengerti lebih cepat hal-hal yang sebenarnya bukan porsi mereka?
It is really a pity because we only become a child once.
Menurut saya sih, belum saatnya anak berumur 7 - 12 tahun bicara soal patah hati, atau selingkuh, atau hati yang remuk karena bukan terbuat dari baja.
Menurut Anda bagaimana?
Karena rasanya, sekarang ini jaman memang makin bergeser ya.
Saya harapkan komentar dan vote Anda. Sekedar ingin tahu seberapa jauh jaman telah bergeser.
PS: Geez, I am officially have 4 post in 2 days. I must be really have nothing to do.
Dec 26, 2008
Dec 25, 2008
My Hero
One day, my mom and my sister came to visit me in Bandung. Lets skip the day activities.
Then, here came the night and we all went to PVJ. We were just thinking where we should have dinner when suddenly we saw these two men yelled to each other in front of Sushi Groove. It was weekend or holiday, I don't really remember, so it was pretty crowded there. Everyone definitely put their attention to them. I did.
And then suddenly, a woman stepped between these men, straightened her both arms, and yelled back to them, "STOP!". Wow, what a woman!
But wait! Oh my God!!
I looked at my sister, and she looked back at me, and we both looked at the yelling-woman there. That was OUR mom.
After my mom yelled several more, finally those two men decided to end their lousy fight and went away. My sister and I immediately reached mom and asked her, "what were you doing???", like twenty times.
I was shock, really. But I was also amaze and proud of her too.
I mean, for my entire life, I never do what my mom did that night. It was risky! What if those people were mad or brought gun? (well, I am exaggerating).
But that's what made mommy really looked like a hero there. Hehe.
It was not the first time she acted so heroic. But it was the first time I saw my mom "in action" by myself. I was told this kind of story before.
It happened before my mom wears veil. Back then, my mom was very concern about her hair. Everytime she would go to the hospital (she is a pediatrician), she would rolled her hair with.. hmm.. hair roll? (I don't know what it's name in English.)
One day she was on the way to the hospital. Her driver drove her. She was on the back seat, maybe read newspaper, and as usual, with her hair rolled up.
When the car was stop because of traffic light, right next to my mom's car, a taxi bumped a motorcycle or a car, I don't know for sure. The owner got verrryy mad to the taxi driver. The man was going to punch him.
And then, out of the blue, my mom opened her window, and grabbed the man's arm, then she shouted, "Run, Sir! Run!" to the taxi driver, and he ran away.
My mom saved a taxi driver with her hair still rolled up.
I couldn't really believe the story until I saw my mom did what she did at PVJ by myself.
Geez, weren't you afraid mom? I asked her.
Nope, she said. She wasn't thinking very much, she just did it. It was automatic, she said.
She just couldn't see people hurt each other.
Even tough, when she thought about it afterwards, she was a bit afraid also. But, she said, no one would hurt me... I am 'ibu-ibu'. No one would punch 'ibu-ibu'.
Wow, what a confidence.
So I guess I will wait until I become 'ibu-ibu' before I do what my mom did.
Because 'ibu-ibu' is the new Al Capone, people! Untouchable!
Then, here came the night and we all went to PVJ. We were just thinking where we should have dinner when suddenly we saw these two men yelled to each other in front of Sushi Groove. It was weekend or holiday, I don't really remember, so it was pretty crowded there. Everyone definitely put their attention to them. I did.
And then suddenly, a woman stepped between these men, straightened her both arms, and yelled back to them, "STOP!". Wow, what a woman!
But wait! Oh my God!!
I looked at my sister, and she looked back at me, and we both looked at the yelling-woman there. That was OUR mom.
After my mom yelled several more, finally those two men decided to end their lousy fight and went away. My sister and I immediately reached mom and asked her, "what were you doing???", like twenty times.
I was shock, really. But I was also amaze and proud of her too.
I mean, for my entire life, I never do what my mom did that night. It was risky! What if those people were mad or brought gun? (well, I am exaggerating).
But that's what made mommy really looked like a hero there. Hehe.
It was not the first time she acted so heroic. But it was the first time I saw my mom "in action" by myself. I was told this kind of story before.
It happened before my mom wears veil. Back then, my mom was very concern about her hair. Everytime she would go to the hospital (she is a pediatrician), she would rolled her hair with.. hmm.. hair roll? (I don't know what it's name in English.)
One day she was on the way to the hospital. Her driver drove her. She was on the back seat, maybe read newspaper, and as usual, with her hair rolled up.
When the car was stop because of traffic light, right next to my mom's car, a taxi bumped a motorcycle or a car, I don't know for sure. The owner got verrryy mad to the taxi driver. The man was going to punch him.
And then, out of the blue, my mom opened her window, and grabbed the man's arm, then she shouted, "Run, Sir! Run!" to the taxi driver, and he ran away.
My mom saved a taxi driver with her hair still rolled up.
I couldn't really believe the story until I saw my mom did what she did at PVJ by myself.
Geez, weren't you afraid mom? I asked her.
Nope, she said. She wasn't thinking very much, she just did it. It was automatic, she said.
She just couldn't see people hurt each other.
Even tough, when she thought about it afterwards, she was a bit afraid also. But, she said, no one would hurt me... I am 'ibu-ibu'. No one would punch 'ibu-ibu'.
Wow, what a confidence.
So I guess I will wait until I become 'ibu-ibu' before I do what my mom did.
Because 'ibu-ibu' is the new Al Capone, people! Untouchable!
Dec 24, 2008
Finding Happiness (2)
This post is the continuation of the previous post. You know, blogger is troubled when you write way too long. I did one, and it appeared too tight between the paragraphs. Well, that's the answer in case you are wondering why I divide my writing into 2 posts.
Back then, have you ever felt you were doing some things for other people happiness?
I have. You know, like when my mom asked me to come with her in some places I have no interest to, or when I let my little brother took my last (and the best one) bite of cake.
Guess what, I actually did those for my own happiness.
Normally, we have some people we do really care about so that their happiness affected our own happiness. If you don't have any, geez, you are lacked of love.
Well, these people are important for us but we don't always like them. Sometimes they forced us to do things that we don't like. And then, one day we had fight with them, then we said, "you know, i did blablabla for you". Well, I did that, maybe you didn't, I don't know.
In my opinion that was not right and it was not wrong neither.
I mean, it was true that these people I really care about asked me to do something, and it was true that I finally did it. But I did it because I knew that it would make me happy because it would make them happy. See, I got the advantages too! I was happy, but I might did not realize it.
The point is I did it for me. For my own happiness. Or at least to avoided my unhappiness.
You know the times when we gave the poor donation, or foods, or anything we think will be useful for them? It felt like we have given them happiness. Well, we may have or we may have not. It depended on how the poor define their happiness.
But we were not only did that for them, were we? We did it for ourselves. Did you? Because I did, maybe you didn't, I don't know.
I mean, I did that because I wanted to feel good about myself, which I don't think is wrong. Giving to others can bring happiness to me. To the people I give? I don't know, I hope it also can.
This time, I also got the advantage.
What I am trying to say is, we, or I, some times think that I do something for other people happiness. In fact, I do that because it is also my happiness. Even if you were threatened by someone that you actually don't like to do something, and you finally did it. It was also for your happiness of not being hurt. Right? Or not right?
Angels are not selfish, but we are.
Everything we do, or I do, is for my own happiness even when I don't feel like that. Which means, everything I do is what I have chosen to do. And that makes all the consequences are my responsibility. And... that makes me, not anyone else, in charge for my own happiness and unhappiness. Because I can try to be happy but some times it didn't work and I became unhappy, which was still my responsibility.
But still, in any unhappy situation, we still can always try to do something to turn it out to be a happy one.
PS: Wow, I really write 2 long posts in a day. This is what happen when you really don't have anything to do. ckckck..
Back then, have you ever felt you were doing some things for other people happiness?
I have. You know, like when my mom asked me to come with her in some places I have no interest to, or when I let my little brother took my last (and the best one) bite of cake.
Guess what, I actually did those for my own happiness.
Normally, we have some people we do really care about so that their happiness affected our own happiness. If you don't have any, geez, you are lacked of love.
Well, these people are important for us but we don't always like them. Sometimes they forced us to do things that we don't like. And then, one day we had fight with them, then we said, "you know, i did blablabla for you". Well, I did that, maybe you didn't, I don't know.
In my opinion that was not right and it was not wrong neither.
I mean, it was true that these people I really care about asked me to do something, and it was true that I finally did it. But I did it because I knew that it would make me happy because it would make them happy. See, I got the advantages too! I was happy, but I might did not realize it.
The point is I did it for me. For my own happiness. Or at least to avoided my unhappiness.
You know the times when we gave the poor donation, or foods, or anything we think will be useful for them? It felt like we have given them happiness. Well, we may have or we may have not. It depended on how the poor define their happiness.
But we were not only did that for them, were we? We did it for ourselves. Did you? Because I did, maybe you didn't, I don't know.
I mean, I did that because I wanted to feel good about myself, which I don't think is wrong. Giving to others can bring happiness to me. To the people I give? I don't know, I hope it also can.
This time, I also got the advantage.
What I am trying to say is, we, or I, some times think that I do something for other people happiness. In fact, I do that because it is also my happiness. Even if you were threatened by someone that you actually don't like to do something, and you finally did it. It was also for your happiness of not being hurt. Right? Or not right?
Angels are not selfish, but we are.
Everything we do, or I do, is for my own happiness even when I don't feel like that. Which means, everything I do is what I have chosen to do. And that makes all the consequences are my responsibility. And... that makes me, not anyone else, in charge for my own happiness and unhappiness. Because I can try to be happy but some times it didn't work and I became unhappy, which was still my responsibility.
But still, in any unhappy situation, we still can always try to do something to turn it out to be a happy one.
PS: Wow, I really write 2 long posts in a day. This is what happen when you really don't have anything to do. ckckck..
Finding Happiness (1)
A dear friend of mine once told me this story about her relatives. She told me that years ago, her relatives took a kid and his mother from the streets to be taken care at their home. Her relatives treated them nice. Gave them shelter, foods, love, and other things you can expect from your family. It was seem like a happy story, right? I thought so.
But that was not the end of the story. One day, the kid and his mom ran away, back to the streets.
So I was confused. I mean, WHAT WERE ON THEIR MIND?!?
They had everything in that house. The kid even had a good chance to have a proper education. I couldn't help but wonder, why would they ruined that?
Actually, that was not the first time I heard that kind of story, about people in the streets being taken care of some nice families, but then they ran away. People said, and my friend also said this, that it was because they were not used to have rules in their life. Those kind of family rules like do not come home late, etc.
Oh dear, what a pity.. I thought so. But then, I thought about it again. Well, maybe they had different perspective of happiness. In my perspective, I am happy because I have a very nice family, I live in prosperity, I go to college, I have good friends, etc. In their perspective, it might be freedom.
When I saw kids singing in the junctions, or old women carrying a basket of fruits to be sold, or everyone that in my opinion were not have as much prosperity or opportunity as I had, I often asked myself:
Are they happy?
I also often asked myself these random questions:
Do they envy me for what I have?
Do they envy me for not need to work as hard as they do?
Do they wish that they were someone else?
Do they think that God is unfair?
Do they wish for a better families?
...and the list will get longer and longer.
Then, I tried to think in reverse version. Lets say, hmm... Paris Hilton. What would she think about me? Maybe she would doubt my happiness to because:
I have (and actually I am not the real owner) Karimun instead of private jet..
I live in a developing country instead of USA..
I wear fifty thousands rupiahs clothes instead of Chanel..
I live in a 4x4 m room instead of penthouse(s)..
I have an ordinary family instead of the famous one..
etc..etc..
My life might be Paris Hilton's (or anyone like her) nightmare. But for me, it is not. It is (almost) perfect. In fact, I don't want hers.
The same thing maybe happened to those kids in the streets. While for me their lives are nightmare, for them, those are perfect. And they don't want mine.
Everyone has their own definition of happiness. Some definitions are shaped by what people told us. We heard, and still hear, those definitions.
Happiness is having a nice family. Happiness is having lots of money. Happiness is to find your soul mate. Happiness is to have people who love you. etc.. etc..
I am not saying that those are wrong. In fact, I take some of those definitions. I just can't always wish that other people will have the same definition as mine. I just have to accept that some things that for me are horrible, can be other people happiness.
PS: I know it's a long writing, but sorry, I have not finished yet. I still have some thoughts to be shared in the next post. It's my blog anyway, I can write whatever I like and you don't have to read. No offense. :)
But that was not the end of the story. One day, the kid and his mom ran away, back to the streets.
So I was confused. I mean, WHAT WERE ON THEIR MIND?!?
They had everything in that house. The kid even had a good chance to have a proper education. I couldn't help but wonder, why would they ruined that?
Actually, that was not the first time I heard that kind of story, about people in the streets being taken care of some nice families, but then they ran away. People said, and my friend also said this, that it was because they were not used to have rules in their life. Those kind of family rules like do not come home late, etc.
Oh dear, what a pity.. I thought so. But then, I thought about it again. Well, maybe they had different perspective of happiness. In my perspective, I am happy because I have a very nice family, I live in prosperity, I go to college, I have good friends, etc. In their perspective, it might be freedom.
When I saw kids singing in the junctions, or old women carrying a basket of fruits to be sold, or everyone that in my opinion were not have as much prosperity or opportunity as I had, I often asked myself:
Are they happy?
I also often asked myself these random questions:
Do they envy me for what I have?
Do they envy me for not need to work as hard as they do?
Do they wish that they were someone else?
Do they think that God is unfair?
Do they wish for a better families?
...and the list will get longer and longer.
Then, I tried to think in reverse version. Lets say, hmm... Paris Hilton. What would she think about me? Maybe she would doubt my happiness to because:
I have (and actually I am not the real owner) Karimun instead of private jet..
I live in a developing country instead of USA..
I wear fifty thousands rupiahs clothes instead of Chanel..
I live in a 4x4 m room instead of penthouse(s)..
I have an ordinary family instead of the famous one..
etc..etc..
My life might be Paris Hilton's (or anyone like her) nightmare. But for me, it is not. It is (almost) perfect. In fact, I don't want hers.
The same thing maybe happened to those kids in the streets. While for me their lives are nightmare, for them, those are perfect. And they don't want mine.
Everyone has their own definition of happiness. Some definitions are shaped by what people told us. We heard, and still hear, those definitions.
Happiness is having a nice family. Happiness is having lots of money. Happiness is to find your soul mate. Happiness is to have people who love you. etc.. etc..
I am not saying that those are wrong. In fact, I take some of those definitions. I just can't always wish that other people will have the same definition as mine. I just have to accept that some things that for me are horrible, can be other people happiness.
PS: I know it's a long writing, but sorry, I have not finished yet. I still have some thoughts to be shared in the next post. It's my blog anyway, I can write whatever I like and you don't have to read. No offense. :)
Dec 16, 2008
mas kasir sabar ya..
Ceritanya, minggu kemarin saya pulang ke Jakarta. Melanggar omongan sendiri yang bertekad tidak akan pulang dulu sebelum TA beres. Tapi kemarin kan Idul Adha, jadi kayaknya tidak apa-apa. Haha.
H-1 saya diajak Mama ke Plaza Semanggi, lihat sana sini, lihat ini itu, sampai akhirnya sampai di toko terakhir, Giant Supermarket. Mari kita lewatkan bagian belanjanya.
Nah, akhirnya saya mengantri di kasir untuk membayar. Antrian cukup panjang walaupun kasir yang dibuka juga banyak. Mungkin karena menjelang Lebaran Haji.
5 menit. 10 menit. 15 menit. Waaa.. lama amat siiih.
Kayaknya orang-orang belanja partai besar nih. Saya gemas sekali dalam keadaan seperti ini. Ayo dong mas-mas kasir, hurry up!!
Akhirnya tibalah giliran saya. Eh tak dinyana ternyata waktu mau mengeluarkan struk belanja, mesinnya macet. Ohlala...
Jadilah si mas-mas kasir berlari dulu kesana kemari meminta bantuan. Aduuh..
Saya perhatikan lagi, kasihan juga mas-mas kasir ini. Dia pasti capek banget melakukan pekerjaan repetitif ini. Apalagi laki-laki kan biasanya tidak sabaran untuk melakukan hal-hal semacam ini. Tapi yang paling bikin saya kasihan, kasir-kasir ini harus melakukan pekerjaannya sambil berdiri. Ohlala (lagi)...
Berapa lama ya dia harus berdiri? 1 jam? 2 jam? Sepanjang shift kerjanya?
Ditambah kalau ada beberapa pengunjung yang protes atau marah atau rewel.
Saat itulah saya berpikir, ternyata my (ex-)job wasn't bad at all.
PS: Anw, memang berapa sih harga kursi kasir?
H-1 saya diajak Mama ke Plaza Semanggi, lihat sana sini, lihat ini itu, sampai akhirnya sampai di toko terakhir, Giant Supermarket. Mari kita lewatkan bagian belanjanya.
Nah, akhirnya saya mengantri di kasir untuk membayar. Antrian cukup panjang walaupun kasir yang dibuka juga banyak. Mungkin karena menjelang Lebaran Haji.
5 menit. 10 menit. 15 menit. Waaa.. lama amat siiih.
Kayaknya orang-orang belanja partai besar nih. Saya gemas sekali dalam keadaan seperti ini. Ayo dong mas-mas kasir, hurry up!!
Akhirnya tibalah giliran saya. Eh tak dinyana ternyata waktu mau mengeluarkan struk belanja, mesinnya macet. Ohlala...
Jadilah si mas-mas kasir berlari dulu kesana kemari meminta bantuan. Aduuh..
Saya perhatikan lagi, kasihan juga mas-mas kasir ini. Dia pasti capek banget melakukan pekerjaan repetitif ini. Apalagi laki-laki kan biasanya tidak sabaran untuk melakukan hal-hal semacam ini. Tapi yang paling bikin saya kasihan, kasir-kasir ini harus melakukan pekerjaannya sambil berdiri. Ohlala (lagi)...
Berapa lama ya dia harus berdiri? 1 jam? 2 jam? Sepanjang shift kerjanya?
Ditambah kalau ada beberapa pengunjung yang protes atau marah atau rewel.
Saat itulah saya berpikir, ternyata my (ex-)job wasn't bad at all.
PS: Anw, memang berapa sih harga kursi kasir?
Dec 12, 2008
film and drama
Sebagai salah satu anggota unit kampus yang memiliki bidang videografi, kurang lebih saya mengerti bagaimana sulitnya membuat film yang bagus, meskipun saya sendiri tidak memiliki pengalaman dalam membuat film (kecuali ikut-ikutan membantu teman-teman saya membuat film OSKM). Dari hasil beberapa kali nonton sidang cakru videografi, saya menarik kesimpulan bahwa yang penting dari pembuatan film adalah persiapan pra serta pasca produksi, alur cerita, pemain, eksekusi dan tentu saja hindari bloopers (beginikah cara menuliskannya?).
Makanya, saya bersyukur hidup di zaman dimana banyak film bagus beredar (dan saya juga bersyukur tinggal di negara yang memperbolehkan warganya menonton film). Dari sekian banyak film yang sudah saya tonton, beberapa mempunyai kesan tersendiri.
Crash, misalnya, membuat saya menitikkan air mata di tengah cerita dan memberikan gejolak seperti putaran angin di dada saya setelah saya selesai menontonnya.
Batman: The Dark Knight, membuat saya terkagum-kagum hampir sepanjang hingga film selesai.
Lucky Number Slevin, membuat saya jungkir balik menyusun alur cerita.
Wanted, membuat saya... tidak percaya adegan terakhir si pelaku menembak sang penjahat adalah endingnya. OMG.
Transformer, membuat saya, sayangnya, sedikit kecewa.
Dan film terakhir yang saya tonton, Twilight, membuat saya tidak bisa menahan senyum setelah filmnya selesai. Entah mengapa. Tapi saya senang menonton film tersebut.
Biasanya saya tidak terlalu terpukau dengan drama, meskipun saya sering menontonnya. Well, kecuali mungkin If Only.
Menurut saya, membuat film drama itu sulit, sulit sekali. Karena tidak mengandalkan efek visual seperti layaknya film action. Drama yang terlalu cetek akan terlalu membosankan. Drama yang terlalu serius, akan membingungkan dan akhirnya tidak ditonton sampai selesai.
Saya pun setiap kali menonton film drama tidak berekspektasi tinggi.
Mungkin karena itulah mengapa saya justru senang sama Twilight ini. Soalnya saya belum pernah melihat trailer nya. Kemarin dulu saya lihat trailer nya 21 ternyata setelah nonton filmnya, eh below expectation.
Kecuali omongan adik saya yang bilang Twilight ini bagus, praktis saya tidak punya bahan pertimbangan lain. Untunglah, soalnya mungkin kalau saya keburu diracuni opini-opini orang lain yang membuat harapan saya melambung, bisa jadi saya tidak sesenang itu selesai menontonnya, seperti yang terjadi pada Nadya.
It's a good thing bahwa saya merasa senang sampai senyum-senyum sendiri setelah menonton film. Sudah lama saya tidak begitu.
:)
Thanks to Nadya and Aldud who let me joined them watched this movie.
Makanya, saya bersyukur hidup di zaman dimana banyak film bagus beredar (dan saya juga bersyukur tinggal di negara yang memperbolehkan warganya menonton film). Dari sekian banyak film yang sudah saya tonton, beberapa mempunyai kesan tersendiri.
Crash, misalnya, membuat saya menitikkan air mata di tengah cerita dan memberikan gejolak seperti putaran angin di dada saya setelah saya selesai menontonnya.
Batman: The Dark Knight, membuat saya terkagum-kagum hampir sepanjang hingga film selesai.
Lucky Number Slevin, membuat saya jungkir balik menyusun alur cerita.
Wanted, membuat saya... tidak percaya adegan terakhir si pelaku menembak sang penjahat adalah endingnya. OMG.
Transformer, membuat saya, sayangnya, sedikit kecewa.
Dan film terakhir yang saya tonton, Twilight, membuat saya tidak bisa menahan senyum setelah filmnya selesai. Entah mengapa. Tapi saya senang menonton film tersebut.
Biasanya saya tidak terlalu terpukau dengan drama, meskipun saya sering menontonnya. Well, kecuali mungkin If Only.
Menurut saya, membuat film drama itu sulit, sulit sekali. Karena tidak mengandalkan efek visual seperti layaknya film action. Drama yang terlalu cetek akan terlalu membosankan. Drama yang terlalu serius, akan membingungkan dan akhirnya tidak ditonton sampai selesai.
Saya pun setiap kali menonton film drama tidak berekspektasi tinggi.
Mungkin karena itulah mengapa saya justru senang sama Twilight ini. Soalnya saya belum pernah melihat trailer nya. Kemarin dulu saya lihat trailer nya 21 ternyata setelah nonton filmnya, eh below expectation.
Kecuali omongan adik saya yang bilang Twilight ini bagus, praktis saya tidak punya bahan pertimbangan lain. Untunglah, soalnya mungkin kalau saya keburu diracuni opini-opini orang lain yang membuat harapan saya melambung, bisa jadi saya tidak sesenang itu selesai menontonnya, seperti yang terjadi pada Nadya.
It's a good thing bahwa saya merasa senang sampai senyum-senyum sendiri setelah menonton film. Sudah lama saya tidak begitu.
:)
Thanks to Nadya and Aldud who let me joined them watched this movie.
Nov 19, 2008
Hubungan tanpa status
Time flies! itu pikiran pertama saya membaca ulang postingan saya di tahun 2005 tentang status pacaran. Saya kutip sedikit yaa..
mikirin bandung. jadi inget sama suatu malam beberapa hari kemarin. di salah satu tempat biliar di Dago, gue dan 2 orang temen gue ngomongin (atau nggosip?) tentang status. status disini bukannya status di ktp : kawin/belum kawin. tapi status jomblo/punya pacar.
pentingkah?
salah satu temen gue mengiyakan dengan mantap. yang satu lagi cuma senyum2 (ga tau maksudnya apa).
Oho, saat ini 'salah satu teman saya yang mengiyakan dengan mantap' pada kutipan di atas justru salah satu pelaku (atau mantan pelaku?) dari hubungan tanpa status.
Jadi, intinya postingan yang saya maksud itu membahas soal hubungan tanpa status yang kala itu entah mengapa rasanya in banget. Hehe.
Apakah status sebuah hubungan itu penting?
Waktu itu saya tulis begini:
ditanya penting apa enggak, jawaban gue enggak. tapi ga terlarang juga karena gue bukan orang anti berstatus yang mempertahankan prinsipnya sampai2 kehilangan yang paling berharga. tapi kalo emang prinsipnya itu lebih berharga, yah terserah aja.
Lalu, (dengan sotoynya..) saya lanjutkan lagi:
buat orang2 yang takut pasangannya diambil orang lain karena statusnya belum jelas, sebenernya kalian ga perlu takut. kalo emang pasangan kalian itu bisa dengan mudahnya 'berpindah ke lain hati', berarti he/she's not worhted (sorry, gue pinjem istilah ini dari seseorang).
bukannya status itu 'dikasih' sama lingkungan sekitar kita? si A itu pacarnya B, selingkuhannya C, dst.tanpa perlu diakuin lingkungan sekitar pun boleh2 aja kok kalo mau punya feeling apapun.
a relationship doesn't need status, it needs you, the one you love, and feelings.
Postingan tersebut mengundang beberapa komentar yang dapat Anda lihat pada link yang telah saya berikan di atas. Ada komentar dari teman saya yang konon brilian yang kalau saya baca lagi, ternyata cukup menarik.
Setuju Min! a relationship doesn't need status. YOU dont even need one. People want you to have one. Or probably they're too scared to lose you that they ask everytime if they lost you already.
Then, here I am, rethingking about those HTS stuffs (well, mostly because nowadays people around me started doing that again. Hehe.)
Tanyakan pada saya lagi, apakah status itu penting?
Jawaban saya adalah saya tidak yakin.
Untungnya memiliki hubungan tanpa status adalah Anda tidak terikat (hahah. Nenek2 juga tau!). Tidak ada pos laporan pacar, tidak ada larangan ini itu, intinya bebas!
Kalau Anda berpikir itulah enaknya HTSan, menurut saya sih, pola pikir soal pacaran Anda yang kelewat batas.
Menurut saya, pacaran itu hanya status maya, tidak ada hitam di atas putih seperti layaknya orang menikah. Setahu saya, begitu ijab kabul, maka seketika itu juga suami memiliki tanggung jawab lahir batin kepada istrinya, dan demikian sebaliknya. Sang suami misalnya, harus menafkahi istrinya. Istri pun memiliki kewajiban sendiri. Nah, pada ikatan perkawinan, menurut Islam, wajib hukumnya istri meminta izin suami ketika akan keluar rumah. Suami berhak melarang.
Itu kalau menikah.
Sementara pacaran, seperti saya bilang, bukanlah sebuah hubungan yang diakui baik oleh agama ataupun negara. Tidak ada hukumnya, tidak ada aturannya.
Maka, terlalu dini nggak sih kalau berlaku layaknya orang telah menikah (misalnya, melarang ini itu, lapor kesana kemari) ketika masih pacaran?
Kembali lagi soal HTS tadi. Menurut saya nih ya, kalau Anda berpikir HTS itu bebas, berarti konsep pacaran Anda yang mesti ditinjau ulang.
Kalau berdasarkan definisi yang saya tulis diatas, berarti sebenarnya pacaran itu juga bebas lho. Memangnya kalau Anda putus bisa dituntut harta gono gini? Memangnya bisa ditalak?
Memangnya bisa dikembalikan ke orang tua (yee.. kapan diambilnya?)?
Pengikatnya hanya perasaan satu sama lain. Saya tidak selingkuh bukan karena tidak ada kesempatan atau tidak bisa, tapi karena tidak mau. Karena saya menghormati perasaan pacar saya. Rasa hormat itu yang jadi pengikat, bukan status pacarannya.
Lalu kenapa mesti pacaran?
Kalau buat saya sih supaya gampang saja kalau ditanya orang, "lo sama Riko gimana?"
"Pacaran". Habis perkara.
Kalau HTSan, "yaa.. deket".
Lalu si penanya akan menanya lagi, "deket gimana?", blablabla.... capek deh.
Atas nama keefisienan saja. Karena dengan atau tanpa pacaran, rasanya perasaan saya tidak akan berubah. Saya masih tetap saya. Riko masih tetap Riko. Apa yang saya suka dari Riko tetap dia miliki, dan sebaliknya. Jadinya perasaan saya ya tidak berubah.
PS. Tulisah ini kok jadi rapat2 amat ya? tidak ada spasi antar baris? Padahal sudah saya buat jarak lho waktu menulis draft nya. Gembel.
Nov 16, 2008
kue tekan
Gambar di atas bukan foto saya. Itu foto teman saya, Nadya, yang sedang membayar di kasir supermarket.
Kelihatan ga sih apa yang dibayar?
Hoho.. Oke, mari kita flasback beberapa saat sebelum kejadian Nadya membayar di kasir.
Nadya tidak sedang menunjuk, Kawan. Tidak. Dia tidak sedang berkata pada saya, "Gue mau roti yang itu Min". Bahkan, sebenarnya ia tidak tertarik untuk mencicipi roti tersebut.
Hoho. Anda bingung ya apa korelasinya foto ini dengan foto sebelumnya?
Hihi, ini lho..
Menurut saya sih lucu (a.ka aneh). Tapi menurut beberapa teman saya sih tidak. Peringatan seperti di atas sudah lumrah, katanya.
Apa saya ketinggalan jaman ya?
???
Nov 2, 2008
hadiah berantai
Jadi, ceritanya saya dapat tautan blog berantai lagi nih. Tapi kali ini saya tidak perlu menulis 6 keanehan saya lagi (ahahah). Cukup memajang foto beruang pink yang ada di samping itu.
Btw, saya ditaut oleh Dea salah satu teman saya yang lucu dan punya worth reading blog.
Nah, ini peraturanya:
1. Put the logo on your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3. Nominate at least 4 other blogs.
4. Add links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.
Untuk poin 3 saya berikan tautan berikutnya kepada:
- Batari
- Ebi
- Aldud
- Ray
heuheu... selamat selamaat...
Btw, saya ditaut oleh Dea salah satu teman saya yang lucu dan punya worth reading blog.
Nah, ini peraturanya:
1. Put the logo on your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3. Nominate at least 4 other blogs.
4. Add links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.
Untuk poin 3 saya berikan tautan berikutnya kepada:
- Batari
- Ebi
- Aldud
- Ray
heuheu... selamat selamaat...
Oct 18, 2008
C Type Brain
Hari ini, pada kuliah yang paling saya least expected ternyata amazingly saya menemukan hal yang menarik (ini pujian atau hinaan sih?).
Saya terlambat 30 menit. Dan karena tidak dapat tempat duduk, saya baru masuk kelas 1 jam setelah kuliah dimulai.
Pokoknya, masuk-masuk dosennya sedang menerangkan tentang tipe-tipe otak, A B C D. A itu analyzer, B itu kayak manajer gitu, C itu orang-orang yang senang bersosialisasi, sedangkan D itu tipe-tipe artist (i said 'artist' with 't' not 'artis').
Langsung saja ya. Ketika dosen saya menerangkan tipe C itu, si social butterfly, orang-orang yang memiliki perhatian lebih kepada orang-orang sekitarnya, saya merasa... sangat jauh dari tipe itu.
Oke, mungkin ada beberapa hal tipe C yang saya miliki, tapi yang jelas bukan bagian "memperhatikan orang-orang di sekitarnya".
Yang dimaksud orang-orang disekitarnya disini adalah teman-temannya.
Sebenarnya saya sudah agak lama mempertanyakan hal ini.
Saya punya nih satu teman yang rajin sekali membalas atau memberi komen pada kawan-kawannya di blog, FB, FS, you named it.. Yap, dan ia bisa menghabiskan berjam-jam membuka FB (saya juga berjam-jam buka FB, tapi hanya untuk main who has the biggest brain)
Saya pikir, ada baiknya juga demikian. Menjaga hubungan dengan orang lain lah paling tidak. Maka saya mencoba untuk berbuat hal yang sama.
..
..
Ternyata saya tak cukup sabar. Bahkan kadang saya tak cukup betah untuk sekedar membalas komen orang. Membalas saja tak cukup betah, apalagi "berbalas-balasan" seperti yang biasa dilakukan teman saya.
Oh ya, ada lagi. Kalau teman saya ini lagi online di YM, hampir semua yang online disapa olehnya.
Saya? Online YM saja jarang-jarang, padahal internet 24 jam di kosan. Kalaupun online, biasanya saya mencari seseorang untuk ditanyai sesuatu. Masih bagus kalau tidak invisible.
Nah, saya juga pernah nih mencoba mengikuti jejak teman saya dengan menyapa orang-orang (lihat kan, kata ulang artinya jamak!!).
..
..
Saya kewalahan. Saya kesulitan ngobrol dengan beberapa orang sekaligus, sembari membuka-buka situs.
Sudahlah, saya pikir, mungkin saya memang bukan teman saya (memang bukan sih..).
Saya memang dominan introvert. Sering asyik sendirian dan agak tertutup (kecuali di blog ini mungkin).
Bahkan ketika mobil saya kemarin dibobol maling dan laptop saya di ambil (that's another story), saya hanya menelepon 2 orang.
Pertama Mama saya.
Kedua teman saya, Bunga, untuk menginformasikan bahwa laptopnya yang kebetulan juga ada di bagasi mobil saya masih selamat dan minta ijin meminjam laptop tersebut untuk mengerjakan tugas.
Itu pun saya telepon setelah saya selesai membuat laporan kehilangan di polisi.
Bukan apa-apa sih. Saya bukannya terlalu sedih atau emosional sampai-sampai tidak bisa menghubungi orang lain lagi. Saya justru menghindari orang yang saya hubungi menjadi terlalu sedih atau emosional untuk saya.
Tapi senang juga sih ketika beberapa teman saya mengirim sms untuk menyemangati (entah dari mana mereka tahu)
Buat saya sih, namanya juga musibah, ikhlasin saja. Memang sih data TA yang sudah diolah berikut Bab 1, sedikit Bab 2 dan Bab 3 serta referensi-referensi internet hilang sudah, tapi toh masih bisa dikerjakan ulang. Saya masih simpan kuesionernya, jadi datanya masih bisa diinput ulang.
Intinya, pada keadaan tertentu saya ini kurang emosional. Dan keadaan tersebut bukannya dipaksakan, tapi secara natural memang demikian saya menghadapi kejadian kemarin malam itu. Saya tidak perlu berusaha keras mendinginkan hati. Iya, hati saya mencelos dan degup jantung saya bertambah cepat. Tapi itu hanya untuk sekitar 10 menit saja.
Kalau kata teman-teman, saya ini terlalu santai. Kalau lagi dibilangin begitu, saya bela diri saya dengan mengatakan bahwa saya ini pakai logika.
Tapi diam-diam saya bertanya-tanya juga sih, apa iya ya saya ini terlalu santai?
Kembali ke tipe C tadi, orang-orang dengan dominasi tipe ini cenderung lebih emosional, yang mana sepertinya sangat bukan saya.
Tapi sungguh lho, saya ingin meningkatkan kemampuan saya di area C ini. Jadi saya akan lebih sabar membalas komen orang-orang, menyapa mereka di YM, memulai sms dengan kawan lama hanya untuk menanyakan kabar, dsb.
Wah, saya jadi merasa jahat.
Saya terlambat 30 menit. Dan karena tidak dapat tempat duduk, saya baru masuk kelas 1 jam setelah kuliah dimulai.
Pokoknya, masuk-masuk dosennya sedang menerangkan tentang tipe-tipe otak, A B C D. A itu analyzer, B itu kayak manajer gitu, C itu orang-orang yang senang bersosialisasi, sedangkan D itu tipe-tipe artist (i said 'artist' with 't' not 'artis').
Langsung saja ya. Ketika dosen saya menerangkan tipe C itu, si social butterfly, orang-orang yang memiliki perhatian lebih kepada orang-orang sekitarnya, saya merasa... sangat jauh dari tipe itu.
Oke, mungkin ada beberapa hal tipe C yang saya miliki, tapi yang jelas bukan bagian "memperhatikan orang-orang di sekitarnya".
Yang dimaksud orang-orang disekitarnya disini adalah teman-temannya.
Sebenarnya saya sudah agak lama mempertanyakan hal ini.
Saya punya nih satu teman yang rajin sekali membalas atau memberi komen pada kawan-kawannya di blog, FB, FS, you named it.. Yap, dan ia bisa menghabiskan berjam-jam membuka FB (saya juga berjam-jam buka FB, tapi hanya untuk main who has the biggest brain)
Saya pikir, ada baiknya juga demikian. Menjaga hubungan dengan orang lain lah paling tidak. Maka saya mencoba untuk berbuat hal yang sama.
..
..
Ternyata saya tak cukup sabar. Bahkan kadang saya tak cukup betah untuk sekedar membalas komen orang. Membalas saja tak cukup betah, apalagi "berbalas-balasan" seperti yang biasa dilakukan teman saya.
Oh ya, ada lagi. Kalau teman saya ini lagi online di YM, hampir semua yang online disapa olehnya.
Saya? Online YM saja jarang-jarang, padahal internet 24 jam di kosan. Kalaupun online, biasanya saya mencari seseorang untuk ditanyai sesuatu. Masih bagus kalau tidak invisible.
Nah, saya juga pernah nih mencoba mengikuti jejak teman saya dengan menyapa orang-orang (lihat kan, kata ulang artinya jamak!!).
..
..
Saya kewalahan. Saya kesulitan ngobrol dengan beberapa orang sekaligus, sembari membuka-buka situs.
Sudahlah, saya pikir, mungkin saya memang bukan teman saya (memang bukan sih..).
Saya memang dominan introvert. Sering asyik sendirian dan agak tertutup (kecuali di blog ini mungkin).
Bahkan ketika mobil saya kemarin dibobol maling dan laptop saya di ambil (that's another story), saya hanya menelepon 2 orang.
Pertama Mama saya.
Kedua teman saya, Bunga, untuk menginformasikan bahwa laptopnya yang kebetulan juga ada di bagasi mobil saya masih selamat dan minta ijin meminjam laptop tersebut untuk mengerjakan tugas.
Itu pun saya telepon setelah saya selesai membuat laporan kehilangan di polisi.
Bukan apa-apa sih. Saya bukannya terlalu sedih atau emosional sampai-sampai tidak bisa menghubungi orang lain lagi. Saya justru menghindari orang yang saya hubungi menjadi terlalu sedih atau emosional untuk saya.
Tapi senang juga sih ketika beberapa teman saya mengirim sms untuk menyemangati (entah dari mana mereka tahu)
Buat saya sih, namanya juga musibah, ikhlasin saja. Memang sih data TA yang sudah diolah berikut Bab 1, sedikit Bab 2 dan Bab 3 serta referensi-referensi internet hilang sudah, tapi toh masih bisa dikerjakan ulang. Saya masih simpan kuesionernya, jadi datanya masih bisa diinput ulang.
Intinya, pada keadaan tertentu saya ini kurang emosional. Dan keadaan tersebut bukannya dipaksakan, tapi secara natural memang demikian saya menghadapi kejadian kemarin malam itu. Saya tidak perlu berusaha keras mendinginkan hati. Iya, hati saya mencelos dan degup jantung saya bertambah cepat. Tapi itu hanya untuk sekitar 10 menit saja.
Kalau kata teman-teman, saya ini terlalu santai. Kalau lagi dibilangin begitu, saya bela diri saya dengan mengatakan bahwa saya ini pakai logika.
Tapi diam-diam saya bertanya-tanya juga sih, apa iya ya saya ini terlalu santai?
Kembali ke tipe C tadi, orang-orang dengan dominasi tipe ini cenderung lebih emosional, yang mana sepertinya sangat bukan saya.
Tapi sungguh lho, saya ingin meningkatkan kemampuan saya di area C ini. Jadi saya akan lebih sabar membalas komen orang-orang, menyapa mereka di YM, memulai sms dengan kawan lama hanya untuk menanyakan kabar, dsb.
Wah, saya jadi merasa jahat.
Oct 16, 2008
'tolong' dan prasangka
Beni, adik saya yang paling bungsu, sekarang sudah masuk Sekolah Dasar. Sudah mulai pintar membaca, menulis dan sedikit Bahasa Inggris. Ia pun sudah mulai pintar menyuruh orang. Seperti,
"Mau makaaan!"
"Susu doong!"
dst.
Berulangkali orangtua saya mengingatkan, "Katakan 'tolong'!" tiap kali akan menyuruh orang lain melakukan sesuatu untuk kamu.
Kadang kita mungkin tidak sadar, betapa besarnya pengaruh kata 'tolong' atau 'minta tolong' dalam kalimat kita. Itu saya rasakan sendiri beberapa hari kemarin.
Beberapa hari kemarin saya dan seorang rekan datang ke sebuah kantor untuk urusan pekerjaan. Pendeknya, selesai berdiskusi dengan pejabat yang bersangkutan, saya print hasil diskusinya. Karena siangnya kami akan rapat, maka saya bertanya kepada rekan saya tersebut. Perlukah dokumen ini di fotokopi?
Lalu rekan saya menjawab, suruh saja si mas itu siapa namanya untuk fotokopikan.
Siang itu memang cukup panas. Mungkin hati saya jadi ketularan panas. Yang jelas kalimat itu terasa tidak enak saya dengar.
Mungkin bukan masalah besar bagi orang lain. Tapi kalau saya disuruh oleh sesorang yang bahkan lupa nama saya, rasanya sih saya kesal juga.
Lagipula menggantikan 'menyuruh' dengan 'minta tolong' it won't cost you anything.
Mungkin saya terlalu sensitif dan membesarkan masalah. Yah, entahlah mungkin saja begitu.
Karena menurut saya menyuruh seseorang tanpa nada yang sopan atau kata 'tolong' itu agak merendahkan. Yah, sepertinya saya memang berlebihan. Saya yakin rekan saya tidak berpikir sampai kesana.
But here's the funny part, ketika seseorang merendahkan orang lain, satu-satunya orang yang menjadi rendah justru orang itu sendiri.
Bicara tentang merendahkan orang lain, saya jadi ingat kata-kata seorang teman dulu. Dia bilang begini. Tidak ada orang yang merendahkan orang lain tanpa merendahkan dirinya sendiri.
Saya pun bingung, maksudnya apa?
Lalu dijelaskan oleh teman saya ini. Seseorang hanya merendahkan orang lain ketika ia merasa dirinya sendiri belum cukup tinggi. Karena ia merasa tidak tinggi, maka ia perlu membuat orang lain lebih rendah agar meskipun ia tidak menjadi yang tertinggi, setidaknya ia bukan yang terendah.
Tentu saja banyak cara merendahkan orang lain. Kadang tanpa sadar meskipun tidak terucap, kita merendahkan orang lain dalam pikiran kita. Itu terjadi pada saya. Bahkan di tulisan ini pun saya sedang menjudge rekan saya. Dan saya merasa itu sukar dikendalikan.
Saya rasa memang sudah sifat alamiah manusia untuk memberikan judgement kepada orang lain. Kadang terlalu dini dan dangkal.
Bahkan seorang Nabi pun pernah berprasangka kepada orang lain.
Di sisi lain, saya juga sering merasakan menjadi korban prasangka orang lain. Dan itu membuat saya sedih, marah, kecewa. Tapi lalu kalau saya pikir-pikir lagi, kenapa harus sedih, marah, kecewa?
Orang lain berhak berprasangka. Saya pun tak akan punya daya untuk membendung semua prasangka orang. Tapi saya punya kontrol atas apa yang akan saya lakukan dan pikirkan. Jadi selama saya pikir apa yang saya lakukan adalah benar, buat apa memusingkan prasangka orang?
Hidup ini terlalu singkat untuk selalu memikirkan pendapat orang lain tentang saya. Terutama dari orang-orang yang tidak dekat dengan saya, dan belum tentu punya niatan baik terhadap saya.
Itu sih menurut saya. :)
"Mau makaaan!"
"Susu doong!"
dst.
Berulangkali orangtua saya mengingatkan, "Katakan 'tolong'!" tiap kali akan menyuruh orang lain melakukan sesuatu untuk kamu.
Kadang kita mungkin tidak sadar, betapa besarnya pengaruh kata 'tolong' atau 'minta tolong' dalam kalimat kita. Itu saya rasakan sendiri beberapa hari kemarin.
Beberapa hari kemarin saya dan seorang rekan datang ke sebuah kantor untuk urusan pekerjaan. Pendeknya, selesai berdiskusi dengan pejabat yang bersangkutan, saya print hasil diskusinya. Karena siangnya kami akan rapat, maka saya bertanya kepada rekan saya tersebut. Perlukah dokumen ini di fotokopi?
Lalu rekan saya menjawab, suruh saja si mas itu siapa namanya untuk fotokopikan.
Siang itu memang cukup panas. Mungkin hati saya jadi ketularan panas. Yang jelas kalimat itu terasa tidak enak saya dengar.
Mungkin bukan masalah besar bagi orang lain. Tapi kalau saya disuruh oleh sesorang yang bahkan lupa nama saya, rasanya sih saya kesal juga.
Lagipula menggantikan 'menyuruh' dengan 'minta tolong' it won't cost you anything.
Mungkin saya terlalu sensitif dan membesarkan masalah. Yah, entahlah mungkin saja begitu.
Karena menurut saya menyuruh seseorang tanpa nada yang sopan atau kata 'tolong' itu agak merendahkan. Yah, sepertinya saya memang berlebihan. Saya yakin rekan saya tidak berpikir sampai kesana.
But here's the funny part, ketika seseorang merendahkan orang lain, satu-satunya orang yang menjadi rendah justru orang itu sendiri.
Bicara tentang merendahkan orang lain, saya jadi ingat kata-kata seorang teman dulu. Dia bilang begini. Tidak ada orang yang merendahkan orang lain tanpa merendahkan dirinya sendiri.
Saya pun bingung, maksudnya apa?
Lalu dijelaskan oleh teman saya ini. Seseorang hanya merendahkan orang lain ketika ia merasa dirinya sendiri belum cukup tinggi. Karena ia merasa tidak tinggi, maka ia perlu membuat orang lain lebih rendah agar meskipun ia tidak menjadi yang tertinggi, setidaknya ia bukan yang terendah.
Tentu saja banyak cara merendahkan orang lain. Kadang tanpa sadar meskipun tidak terucap, kita merendahkan orang lain dalam pikiran kita. Itu terjadi pada saya. Bahkan di tulisan ini pun saya sedang menjudge rekan saya. Dan saya merasa itu sukar dikendalikan.
Saya rasa memang sudah sifat alamiah manusia untuk memberikan judgement kepada orang lain. Kadang terlalu dini dan dangkal.
Bahkan seorang Nabi pun pernah berprasangka kepada orang lain.
Di sisi lain, saya juga sering merasakan menjadi korban prasangka orang lain. Dan itu membuat saya sedih, marah, kecewa. Tapi lalu kalau saya pikir-pikir lagi, kenapa harus sedih, marah, kecewa?
Orang lain berhak berprasangka. Saya pun tak akan punya daya untuk membendung semua prasangka orang. Tapi saya punya kontrol atas apa yang akan saya lakukan dan pikirkan. Jadi selama saya pikir apa yang saya lakukan adalah benar, buat apa memusingkan prasangka orang?
Hidup ini terlalu singkat untuk selalu memikirkan pendapat orang lain tentang saya. Terutama dari orang-orang yang tidak dekat dengan saya, dan belum tentu punya niatan baik terhadap saya.
Itu sih menurut saya. :)
Sep 26, 2008
Sama tapi tak serupa?
Apa yang akan Anda lakukan bila Anda menemukan dua karya ilmiah yang nyaris sama?
Definisi dari nyaris sama adalah:
Kedua karya ilmiah ini berselang 4 tahun dan berasal dari jurusan yang berbeda.
Nah, jadi apa yang akan Anda lakukan?
a. Laporkan pada Kaprodi, yang mana hal tersebut pastinya akan berdampak pada kemungkinan dicabutnya status sarjana seseorang.
b. Laporkan pada pembimbing Anda, yang mungkin juga akan terjadi resiko seperti di atas.
c. Laporkan pada pembimbing penulis karya ilmiah yang bersangkutan, idem.
d. Sudahlah lupakan saja. Toh, banyak juga kejadian seperti ini.
Jawaban:......
Definisi dari nyaris sama adalah:
- Obyeknya nyaris sama. Sama-sama tentang perbandingan transport, hanya beda moda yang dibahas.
- Dasar teorinya sama, urutannya sama, kontennya sama, kecuali sedikit perbedaan di sub bab Peta Penelitian.
- Datanya sama. Yap. Sama. Plek2an. Jumlah kuesioner sama. Jumlah variabelnya sama. Hasil kuesioner pun sepertinya sama, saya hanya mengambil acak sampel untuk data responden ke 31 s/d 40 dan responden ke 50.
Kedua karya ilmiah ini berselang 4 tahun dan berasal dari jurusan yang berbeda.
Nah, jadi apa yang akan Anda lakukan?
a. Laporkan pada Kaprodi, yang mana hal tersebut pastinya akan berdampak pada kemungkinan dicabutnya status sarjana seseorang.
b. Laporkan pada pembimbing Anda, yang mungkin juga akan terjadi resiko seperti di atas.
c. Laporkan pada pembimbing penulis karya ilmiah yang bersangkutan, idem.
d. Sudahlah lupakan saja. Toh, banyak juga kejadian seperti ini.
Jawaban:......
Sep 22, 2008
bosan. bingung. not in the mood.
Saya tidak tahu mau menulis apa. Atau tidak mood. Atau sudah bosan. Entahlah.
Yah, maaf kalau untuk beberapa waktu ke depan tidak akan ada yang baru disini.
Eniwei, mohon maaf lahir bathin temans! Semoga Lebaran ini kita kembali fitrah.
(kan bentar lagi lebaran).
Yah, maaf kalau untuk beberapa waktu ke depan tidak akan ada yang baru disini.
Eniwei, mohon maaf lahir bathin temans! Semoga Lebaran ini kita kembali fitrah.
(kan bentar lagi lebaran).
Sep 2, 2008
Oprah at Standford
Saya mengutip pidato Oprah di upacara kelulusan di Stanford University. Semoga memberikan sesuatu yang berguna, terutama bagi teman-teman saya yang akan segera lulus Oktober ini. :)
I found this quite inspiring.
The world has so many lessons to teach you. I consider the world, this Earth, to be like a school and our life the classrooms. And sometimes here in this Planet Earth school the lessons often come dressed up as detours or roadblocks. And sometimes as full-blown crises. And the secret I've learned to getting ahead is being open to the lessons, lessons from the grandest university of all, that is, the universe itself.
The three lessons that have had the greatest impact on my life have to do with feelings, with failure and with finding happiness.
So, here I am, 22, making $22,000 a year and, yet, it didn't feel right. It didn't feel right. The first sign, as President Hennessy was saying, was when they tried to change my name. The news director said to me at the time, "Nobody's going to remember Oprah. So, we want to change your name. We've come up with a name we think that people will remember and people will like. It's a friendly name: Suzie."
So, I grew up not loving the name, but once I was asked to change it, I thought, well, it is my name and do I look like a Suzie to you? So, I thought, no, it doesn't feel right. I'm not going to change my name. And if people remember it or not, that's OK.
And then they said they didn't like the way I looked. This was in 1976, when your boss could call you in and say, "I don't like the way you look." Now that would be called a lawsuit, but back then they could just say, "I don't like the way you look." Which, in case some of you in the back, if you can't tell, is nothing like Barbara Walters. So, they sent me to a salon where they gave me a perm, and after a few days all my hair fell out and I had to shave my head. And then they really didn't like the way I looked.
But even worse than being bald, I really hated, hated, hated being sent to report on other people's tragedies as a part of my daily duty, knowing that I was just expected to observe, when everything in my instinct told me that I should be doing something, I should be lending a hand.
And after eight months, I lost that job. They said I was too emotional. I was too much. But since they didn't want to pay out the contract, they put me on a talk show in Baltimore. And the moment I sat down on that show, the moment I did, I felt like I'd come home. I realized that TV could be more than just a playground, but a platform for service, for helping other people lift their lives. And the moment I sat down, doing that talk show, it felt like breathing. It felt right. And that's where everything that followed for me began.
And I got that lesson. When you're doing the work you're meant to do, it feels right and every day is a bonus, regardless of what you're getting paid.
It's true. And how do you know when you're doing something right? How do you know that? It feels so. What I know now is that feelings are really your GPS system for life.
If it doesn't feel right, don't do it. That's the lesson. And that lesson alone will save you, my friends, a lot of grief. Even doubt means don't. This is what I've learned. There are many times when you don't know what to do. When you don't know what to do, get still, get very still, until you do know what to do.
So, I say to you, forget about the fast lane. If you really want to fly, just harness your power to your passion. Honor your calling. Everybody has one. Trust your heart and success will come to you.
But having a lot of money does not automatically make you a successful person. What you want is money and meaning. You want your work to be meaningful. Because meaning is what brings the real richness to your life. What you really want is to be surrounded by people you trust and treasure and by people who cherish you. That's when you're really rich.
So, lesson one, follow your feelings. If it feels right, move forward. If it doesn't feel right, don't do it.
Now I want to talk a little bit about failings, because nobody's journey is seamless or smooth. We all stumble. We all have setbacks. If things go wrong, you hit a dead end—as you will—it's just life's way of saying time to change course.
So, ask every failure—this is what I do with every failure, every crisis, every difficult time—I say, what is this here to teach me? And as soon as you get the lesson, you get to move on. If you really get the lesson, you pass and you don't have to repeat the class.
Whatever you resist persists. But, if you ask the right question—not why is this happening, but what is this here to teach me?—it puts you in the place and space to get the lesson you need.
So, it's a lesson that applies to all of our lives as a whole. What matters most is what's inside. What matters most is the sense of integrity, of quality and beauty. I got that lesson.
Not a small topic this is, finding happiness. But in some ways I think it's the simplest of all. Gwendolyn Brooks wrote a poem for her children. It's called "Speech to the Young : Speech to the Progress-Toward." And she says at the end, "Live not for battles won. / Live not for the-end-of-the-song. / Live in the along." She's saying, like Eckhart Tolle, that you have to live for the present. You have to be in the moment. Whatever has happened to you in your past has no power over this present moment, because life is now.
But I think she's also saying, be a part of something. Don't live for yourself alone. This is what I know for sure: In order to be truly happy, you must live along with and you have to stand for something larger than yourself.
To be happy, you have to give something back.
The lesson here is clear, and that is, if you're hurting, you need to help somebody ease their hurt. If you're in pain, help somebody else's pain. And when you're in a mess, you get yourself out of the mess helping somebody out of theirs.
I hope you strive for more than just the good feeling that service provides, because I know this for sure, that doing good actually makes you better. So, whatever field you choose, if you operate from the paradigm of service, I know your life will have more value and you will be happy.
Whether you've been called, as so many of you here today getting doctorates and other degrees, to the professions of business, law, engineering, humanities, science, medicine, if you choose to offer your skills and talent in service, when you choose the paradigm of service, looking at life through that paradigm, it turns everything you do from a job into a gift.
And I know you haven't spent all this time at Stanford just to go out and get a job.
You have the heart and the smarts to go with it. And it's up to you to decide, really, where will you now use those gifts? You've got the diploma, so go out and get the lessons, 'cause I know great things are sure to come.
Read the full version here.
Or watch the edited video here.
I found this quite inspiring.
***
Learning is really in the broadest sense what I want to talk about today, because your education, of course, isn't ending here. In many ways, it's only just begun. The world has so many lessons to teach you. I consider the world, this Earth, to be like a school and our life the classrooms. And sometimes here in this Planet Earth school the lessons often come dressed up as detours or roadblocks. And sometimes as full-blown crises. And the secret I've learned to getting ahead is being open to the lessons, lessons from the grandest university of all, that is, the universe itself.
The three lessons that have had the greatest impact on my life have to do with feelings, with failure and with finding happiness.
So, here I am, 22, making $22,000 a year and, yet, it didn't feel right. It didn't feel right. The first sign, as President Hennessy was saying, was when they tried to change my name. The news director said to me at the time, "Nobody's going to remember Oprah. So, we want to change your name. We've come up with a name we think that people will remember and people will like. It's a friendly name: Suzie."
So, I grew up not loving the name, but once I was asked to change it, I thought, well, it is my name and do I look like a Suzie to you? So, I thought, no, it doesn't feel right. I'm not going to change my name. And if people remember it or not, that's OK.
And then they said they didn't like the way I looked. This was in 1976, when your boss could call you in and say, "I don't like the way you look." Now that would be called a lawsuit, but back then they could just say, "I don't like the way you look." Which, in case some of you in the back, if you can't tell, is nothing like Barbara Walters. So, they sent me to a salon where they gave me a perm, and after a few days all my hair fell out and I had to shave my head. And then they really didn't like the way I looked.
But even worse than being bald, I really hated, hated, hated being sent to report on other people's tragedies as a part of my daily duty, knowing that I was just expected to observe, when everything in my instinct told me that I should be doing something, I should be lending a hand.
And after eight months, I lost that job. They said I was too emotional. I was too much. But since they didn't want to pay out the contract, they put me on a talk show in Baltimore. And the moment I sat down on that show, the moment I did, I felt like I'd come home. I realized that TV could be more than just a playground, but a platform for service, for helping other people lift their lives. And the moment I sat down, doing that talk show, it felt like breathing. It felt right. And that's where everything that followed for me began.
And I got that lesson. When you're doing the work you're meant to do, it feels right and every day is a bonus, regardless of what you're getting paid.
It's true. And how do you know when you're doing something right? How do you know that? It feels so. What I know now is that feelings are really your GPS system for life.
If it doesn't feel right, don't do it. That's the lesson. And that lesson alone will save you, my friends, a lot of grief. Even doubt means don't. This is what I've learned. There are many times when you don't know what to do. When you don't know what to do, get still, get very still, until you do know what to do.
So, I say to you, forget about the fast lane. If you really want to fly, just harness your power to your passion. Honor your calling. Everybody has one. Trust your heart and success will come to you.
But having a lot of money does not automatically make you a successful person. What you want is money and meaning. You want your work to be meaningful. Because meaning is what brings the real richness to your life. What you really want is to be surrounded by people you trust and treasure and by people who cherish you. That's when you're really rich.
So, lesson one, follow your feelings. If it feels right, move forward. If it doesn't feel right, don't do it.
Now I want to talk a little bit about failings, because nobody's journey is seamless or smooth. We all stumble. We all have setbacks. If things go wrong, you hit a dead end—as you will—it's just life's way of saying time to change course.
So, ask every failure—this is what I do with every failure, every crisis, every difficult time—I say, what is this here to teach me? And as soon as you get the lesson, you get to move on. If you really get the lesson, you pass and you don't have to repeat the class.
Whatever you resist persists. But, if you ask the right question—not why is this happening, but what is this here to teach me?—it puts you in the place and space to get the lesson you need.
So, it's a lesson that applies to all of our lives as a whole. What matters most is what's inside. What matters most is the sense of integrity, of quality and beauty. I got that lesson.
Not a small topic this is, finding happiness. But in some ways I think it's the simplest of all. Gwendolyn Brooks wrote a poem for her children. It's called "Speech to the Young : Speech to the Progress-Toward." And she says at the end, "Live not for battles won. / Live not for the-end-of-the-song. / Live in the along." She's saying, like Eckhart Tolle, that you have to live for the present. You have to be in the moment. Whatever has happened to you in your past has no power over this present moment, because life is now.
But I think she's also saying, be a part of something. Don't live for yourself alone. This is what I know for sure: In order to be truly happy, you must live along with and you have to stand for something larger than yourself.
To be happy, you have to give something back.
The lesson here is clear, and that is, if you're hurting, you need to help somebody ease their hurt. If you're in pain, help somebody else's pain. And when you're in a mess, you get yourself out of the mess helping somebody out of theirs.
I hope you strive for more than just the good feeling that service provides, because I know this for sure, that doing good actually makes you better. So, whatever field you choose, if you operate from the paradigm of service, I know your life will have more value and you will be happy.
Whether you've been called, as so many of you here today getting doctorates and other degrees, to the professions of business, law, engineering, humanities, science, medicine, if you choose to offer your skills and talent in service, when you choose the paradigm of service, looking at life through that paradigm, it turns everything you do from a job into a gift.
And I know you haven't spent all this time at Stanford just to go out and get a job.
You have the heart and the smarts to go with it. And it's up to you to decide, really, where will you now use those gifts? You've got the diploma, so go out and get the lessons, 'cause I know great things are sure to come.
***
Read the full version here.
Or watch the edited video here.
Aug 31, 2008
Dekorasi tambahan
Ada dekorasi tambahan di kamar saya sejak beberapa minggu kemarin.
Hehe. Ini adalah hasil belajar untuk ujian bahasa Perancis hari Selasa kemarin. Agak panik juga soalnya selain ujian tertulis, ada ujian oral atau percakapannya juga. Padahal saya cukup sering melewatkan kelas di term ini.
Banyak jug yang harus dihafal, mulai dari berbagai verb berikut masculin dan feminin nya, lalu juga pronom-pronom itu. Celakanya, di term sebelum ini saya juga agak beler, jadi untuk ujian kali ini saya juga harus mengulang beberapa materi di term sebelumnya.
Belum lagi untuk urusan ecoute atau listening, saya payah sekali disini. Pernah saya hampir menangis waktu ujian karena saya sama sekali tidak mengerti apa yang dikatakan si bule di kaset itu. Mungkin juga ini karma karena waktu dulu saya les bahasa Inggris di ILP masa SMA dulu, saya justru paling bisa bagian listening. Untuk bagian ini, biasanya nilai saya 90 atau 100. Karenanya saya jadi sedikit besar kepala. Huh..
Tapi entah mengapa, meskipun bahasa Perancis ini lumayan susah dan saya lumayan terseok-seok dalam mengikuti pelajarannya, saya tetap suka. Padahal dulu saya juga pernah belajar bahasa Jerman, dan saya bahkan tak punya cukup daya dan kemauan untuk menyelesaikan term kedua.
Namun beda untuk bahasa Perancis. Sepertinya lebih menyenangkan biarpun saya suka dibuat pusing oleh pengucapan dan berbagai embel-embelnya.
Doakan saya semoga hasil ujian saya bagus sehingga saja bisa lulus untuk term ini. :)
Hehe. Ini adalah hasil belajar untuk ujian bahasa Perancis hari Selasa kemarin. Agak panik juga soalnya selain ujian tertulis, ada ujian oral atau percakapannya juga. Padahal saya cukup sering melewatkan kelas di term ini.
Banyak jug yang harus dihafal, mulai dari berbagai verb berikut masculin dan feminin nya, lalu juga pronom-pronom itu. Celakanya, di term sebelum ini saya juga agak beler, jadi untuk ujian kali ini saya juga harus mengulang beberapa materi di term sebelumnya.
Belum lagi untuk urusan ecoute atau listening, saya payah sekali disini. Pernah saya hampir menangis waktu ujian karena saya sama sekali tidak mengerti apa yang dikatakan si bule di kaset itu. Mungkin juga ini karma karena waktu dulu saya les bahasa Inggris di ILP masa SMA dulu, saya justru paling bisa bagian listening. Untuk bagian ini, biasanya nilai saya 90 atau 100. Karenanya saya jadi sedikit besar kepala. Huh..
Tapi entah mengapa, meskipun bahasa Perancis ini lumayan susah dan saya lumayan terseok-seok dalam mengikuti pelajarannya, saya tetap suka. Padahal dulu saya juga pernah belajar bahasa Jerman, dan saya bahkan tak punya cukup daya dan kemauan untuk menyelesaikan term kedua.
Namun beda untuk bahasa Perancis. Sepertinya lebih menyenangkan biarpun saya suka dibuat pusing oleh pengucapan dan berbagai embel-embelnya.
Doakan saya semoga hasil ujian saya bagus sehingga saja bisa lulus untuk term ini. :)
PIS (Partner In Sushi)
In Japanese cuisine, sushi (寿司, 鮨, 鮓, sushi?) is vinegared rice, usually topped with other ingredients, including fish, various meats, and vegetables. Outside of Japan, sushi is sometimes misunderstood to mean the raw fish itself, or even any fresh raw-seafood dishes.[1] In Japan, sliced raw fish alone is called sashimi and is distinct from sushi, as sashimi is the raw fish component, not the rice component. The word sushi itself comes from an archaic grammatical form of a word that is no longer used in other contexts; literally, sushi means "it's sour".[2]
Ketiga, makanan-makanan ini dibiarkan mempromosikan dirinya sendiri dengan berjalan di conveyer. Untuk orang-orang tertentu, meskipun perut sudah tak lapar lagi, namun keinginan untuk mencomot piring-piring menggoda ini kadang tak dapat ditahan.
Ngomong-ngomong, selain makanan Jepang ini, saya juga masih penggemar serabi, klepon, pecel lele, dan martabak kok. Hehe.
Dulu saya tidak suka makanan Jepang. Mungkin karena katanya makanan Jepang itu rata-rata masih mentah atau setengah matang. Yieks!
Namun entah sejak kapan persisnya, saya mulai menikmati sushi. Setidaknya sushi yang ada di restoran a la Jepang di Indonesia, karena menurut Batari sushi yang di Jepang rasanya berbeda.
Maka ketika kemarin malam PIS (partner in sushi) saya mengajak 'men-sushisushanti' (dikutip dari sms yang dikirim ke ponsel saya), saya pun tak dapat menolak. Pergilah kami berdua ke restoran sushi di Jalan Veteran. Saya lupa, kemarin malam itu malam minggu. Sudah pastilah berjuta umat merayakannya dengan makan atau nonton atau apapun. Alhasil tempat parkir penuh. Untung masih ada tempat parkir di bioskop yang berada tak jauh dari restoran.
Suasana restoran tak jauh beda. Padat merayap seperti jalan tol menjelang senja hari.
Untunglah masih ada tempat di sushi-bar. Kami pun memesan porsi untuk ronde pertama sambil tetap awas memperhatikan piring-piring sushi yang berjalan kemayu di conveyer di depan sushi-bar.
Kemarin itu baru saya perhatikan dan notice bahwa di balik sushi-bar, para 'koki' ini terus saja membuat sushi tanpa henti tanpa peduli apakah sushi yang dibuatnya dipesan oleh pengunjung. Make to stock, begitulah kira-kira, meskipun kalau kita ingin sushi yang tidak tersaji di conveyer (saya tidak tahu istilah benarnya apa), para 'koki' ini tentunya dengan senang hati akan membuatkan.
Tapi konsep sushi ini boleh juga lho. Pertama, makanan ini bukan tipe yang disajikan hangat, sehingga tidak masalah bila selang waktu pembuatan hingga proses konsumsinya sedikit lama.
Kedua, makanan-makanan ini disegmentasikan dalam bentuk warna piring. Piring berwarna biru misalnya berharga Rp 9000, warna pink Rp 14000 dan sebagainya. Di bon pembayaran pun yang tertulis hanya '2 piring biru, 1 piring pink'. Ini tentu saja akan memudahkan dan mempercepat proses penghitungan biaya.
Ketiga, makanan-makanan ini dibiarkan mempromosikan dirinya sendiri dengan berjalan di conveyer. Untuk orang-orang tertentu, meskipun perut sudah tak lapar lagi, namun keinginan untuk mencomot piring-piring menggoda ini kadang tak dapat ditahan.
Semalam, kami berdua total menghabiskan 5 piring. Kalau saya hanya menghabiskan satu setengah piring, Anda bisa hitung sendiri berapa yang dihabiskan partner saya ini. Sayang tidak ada dokumentasinya untuk kegiatan semalam.
Ngomong-ngomong, selain makanan Jepang ini, saya juga masih penggemar serabi, klepon, pecel lele, dan martabak kok. Hehe.
Aug 20, 2008
Not So Fast 'Fast-Food'
Minggu pagi 17 Agustus kemarin, saya berangkat dari kosan dengan agak tergesa. Saya punya acara jam 9 pagi di Secapa Setiabudhi, tapi sebelumnya saya harus menjemput teman saya di kampus jam setengah 9. Dan sebelumnya lagi saya harus dan butuh sarapan. Oia, dan tak lupa juga harus mengisi bensin juga.
Maka ketika saya melirik waktu sudah menunjukkan pukul 8 lewat 7 menit, saya jadi agak panik. Mana tahu Simpang macet. Maklumlah ini hari Minggu dan long weekend pula.
Usai mengisi tangki bensin yang sudah nyaris kosong, saya minta Riko mengarahkan mobil ke McDonalds di Simpang Dago. Supaya cepat saja, demikian pertimbangan saya meskipun saat itu saya tidak terlalu berselera membayangkan cheeseburger nol gizi yang akan menjadi sarapan saya.
Sampai di McD, ternyata di depan kasir sudah ramai dengan segerombolan siswi SMP. Dari 4 atau 5 kasir yang tersedia, hanya 1 line yang buka. Argh!
Setelah beberapa saat celingak-celinguk tidak sabar ke arah petugas yang sedang sibuk menuang es krim ke cone, akhirnya ada petugas lain yang menyadari kehadiran kami dan membuka kasir di sebelah. Cheeseburger, beef burger dan Milo regular. Itu saja pesanan kami.
**
Menurut situs wikipedia:
Rumah makan siap saji (bahasa Inggris: fast food restaurant) adalah rumah makan yang menghidangkan makanan dan minuman dengan cepat, biasanya berupa hamburger atau ayam goreng.
Jadi tidak salah dong kalau saya berharap kecepatan adalah fitur utama dari restoran jenis ini. Gizi jelas bukan hal yang dapat diunggulkan. Rasa, relatif. Kadang saya merasa enak kadang saya merasa eneg akibat keberlimpahan berbagai macam zat dalam sebuah burger. Tempat pun tidak nyaman-nyaman amat. Kursinya kecil, membuat saya tak betah duduk lama-lama. AC juga seringkali dipasang terlalu dingin.
Oh sudahlah, saya sudah mengesampingkan segala pertimbangan gizi, rasa dan tempat. Saya hanya ingin cepat-cepat mengisi perut.
**
“Cheese dan beef nya nanti diantar ya Mbak”, demikian kata si petugas. Argh! (lagi)
Saya tak punya pilihan lain kecuali duduk menunggu makanan saya diantar di restoran cepat saji.
Saya ingat, dulu McD pernah punya jam pasir yang diletakkan di kasir-kasirnya. Kira-kira begini pesannya:
"Balikkan jam pasirnya, bila sampai bagian atas jam pasir kosong (yaitu selama 1 menit) makanan Anda belum siap maka Anda akan mendapat es krim cone sebagai kompensasinya."
Kemana ya program itu sekarang?
Apa McD merugi karena terlalu banyak memberi es krim cone gratis kepada pengunjungnya?
Maka ketika saya melirik waktu sudah menunjukkan pukul 8 lewat 7 menit, saya jadi agak panik. Mana tahu Simpang macet. Maklumlah ini hari Minggu dan long weekend pula.
Usai mengisi tangki bensin yang sudah nyaris kosong, saya minta Riko mengarahkan mobil ke McDonalds di Simpang Dago. Supaya cepat saja, demikian pertimbangan saya meskipun saat itu saya tidak terlalu berselera membayangkan cheeseburger nol gizi yang akan menjadi sarapan saya.
Sampai di McD, ternyata di depan kasir sudah ramai dengan segerombolan siswi SMP. Dari 4 atau 5 kasir yang tersedia, hanya 1 line yang buka. Argh!
Setelah beberapa saat celingak-celinguk tidak sabar ke arah petugas yang sedang sibuk menuang es krim ke cone, akhirnya ada petugas lain yang menyadari kehadiran kami dan membuka kasir di sebelah. Cheeseburger, beef burger dan Milo regular. Itu saja pesanan kami.
**
Menurut situs wikipedia:
Rumah makan siap saji (bahasa Inggris: fast food restaurant) adalah rumah makan yang menghidangkan makanan dan minuman dengan cepat, biasanya berupa hamburger atau ayam goreng.
Jadi tidak salah dong kalau saya berharap kecepatan adalah fitur utama dari restoran jenis ini. Gizi jelas bukan hal yang dapat diunggulkan. Rasa, relatif. Kadang saya merasa enak kadang saya merasa eneg akibat keberlimpahan berbagai macam zat dalam sebuah burger. Tempat pun tidak nyaman-nyaman amat. Kursinya kecil, membuat saya tak betah duduk lama-lama. AC juga seringkali dipasang terlalu dingin.
Oh sudahlah, saya sudah mengesampingkan segala pertimbangan gizi, rasa dan tempat. Saya hanya ingin cepat-cepat mengisi perut.
**
“Cheese dan beef nya nanti diantar ya Mbak”, demikian kata si petugas. Argh! (lagi)
Saya tak punya pilihan lain kecuali duduk menunggu makanan saya diantar di restoran cepat saji.
Saya ingat, dulu McD pernah punya jam pasir yang diletakkan di kasir-kasirnya. Kira-kira begini pesannya:
"Balikkan jam pasirnya, bila sampai bagian atas jam pasir kosong (yaitu selama 1 menit) makanan Anda belum siap maka Anda akan mendapat es krim cone sebagai kompensasinya."
Kemana ya program itu sekarang?
Apa McD merugi karena terlalu banyak memberi es krim cone gratis kepada pengunjungnya?
Aug 7, 2008
what a friend can do
Since I was born as the first child in my family, I became the first raising-kids-project of my parents. That's why (I guess), my parents were worrying about many things, especially my Mom. When I was stepping my teen ages, they worried even more (well, that was in my opinion). And sometimes I got furious because they were being so possesive. Well, if I think about that now, I understand that my parents just wanted to proctect me, because they tought I don't know enough about the world. And they were right.
Years later, I found that what my parents forbade me to do are indeed disasters.
Those eras were gone. My parents are not so possesive anymore.
Then, it's my turn. I started to worry about my sister, my brother, my friends, especially closed friends. I warn them if I think that they are going to the wrong direction. I try to protect them from heartache, pain, etc.
Well, they are adult people. Sometimes they listen to me and sometimes the don't. And when they don't, I get worry even more. In Indonesian I would say gemeeeessss sekaliiii.
But, I can be wrong. My opinion may not be the best advice for them. And though I was right, they just won't believe it until they feel it by themselves.
Sometimes, we know what is right, but we just don't want to accept that in our mind. Mostly, because it is too painful. Even though we know that the longer the problem persist, the more pain we will get in the end. But somehow, we just don't have enough courage to face the truth.
I was and perhaps I will be in that position.
Back then, sometimes, for several things, people need to make they own mistakes.
And what a friend can do is... well, just be there when your friend need a midnight call or visit and tell her/him that it's gonna be okay. Because it is.
Conceiving what would be happen if I was right, I prefer to be wrong.
Years later, I found that what my parents forbade me to do are indeed disasters.
Those eras were gone. My parents are not so possesive anymore.
Then, it's my turn. I started to worry about my sister, my brother, my friends, especially closed friends. I warn them if I think that they are going to the wrong direction. I try to protect them from heartache, pain, etc.
Well, they are adult people. Sometimes they listen to me and sometimes the don't. And when they don't, I get worry even more. In Indonesian I would say gemeeeessss sekaliiii.
But, I can be wrong. My opinion may not be the best advice for them. And though I was right, they just won't believe it until they feel it by themselves.
Sometimes, we know what is right, but we just don't want to accept that in our mind. Mostly, because it is too painful. Even though we know that the longer the problem persist, the more pain we will get in the end. But somehow, we just don't have enough courage to face the truth.
I was and perhaps I will be in that position.
Back then, sometimes, for several things, people need to make they own mistakes.
And what a friend can do is... well, just be there when your friend need a midnight call or visit and tell her/him that it's gonna be okay. Because it is.
Conceiving what would be happen if I was right, I prefer to be wrong.
Aug 1, 2008
Mengeluarkan Amarah
Salah satu hal yang sulit saya lakukan sejak dulu: mengeluarkan emosi marah.
Ketika saya katakan 'mengeluarkan', itu karena emosi tersebut ada dan saya rasakan. Namun saya tidak mengerti, tidak bisa menemukan cara yang pas untuk mengekspresikan hal tersebut.
Sering sih saya marah dan mengumpati angkot-angkot di jalan. Tapi ketika berhubungan dengan seseorang yang saya kenal, seorang teman yang bukan sahabat, kelu rasanya lidah ini untuk menghardik. Lain cerita kalau itu sahabat dekat, saya lebih mudah menegurnya.
Ambillah contoh, saya janjian dengan seorang teman. Waktu pertemuan ditentukan olehnya. Mendadak, persis di waktu yang telah disepakati, ia mengabarkan ketidakbisaannya. Untuk alasan, misalkan, nonton film.
Kalau dipikir logis sih ya, saya punya segala alasan di dunia untuk marah. Paling tidak ada tiga alasan. Pertama, bukan saya yang menentukan waktunya. Kedua, pemberitahuan yang dilakukan persis di waktu perjanjian, bukannya 1 atau 2 jam sebelumnya. Ketiga, nonton film woy! Kalau saja alasannya kebelet buang air besar, maka saya akan mengerti.
Jelas saya kesal.
Tapi lagi-lagi, kekesalan itu tidak tahu bagaimana harus saya keluarkan. Yang ada saya hanya diam. Tindakan yang tidak tepat sih kalau menurut saya.
Any suggestion?
Ketika saya katakan 'mengeluarkan', itu karena emosi tersebut ada dan saya rasakan. Namun saya tidak mengerti, tidak bisa menemukan cara yang pas untuk mengekspresikan hal tersebut.
Sering sih saya marah dan mengumpati angkot-angkot di jalan. Tapi ketika berhubungan dengan seseorang yang saya kenal, seorang teman yang bukan sahabat, kelu rasanya lidah ini untuk menghardik. Lain cerita kalau itu sahabat dekat, saya lebih mudah menegurnya.
Ambillah contoh, saya janjian dengan seorang teman. Waktu pertemuan ditentukan olehnya. Mendadak, persis di waktu yang telah disepakati, ia mengabarkan ketidakbisaannya. Untuk alasan, misalkan, nonton film.
Kalau dipikir logis sih ya, saya punya segala alasan di dunia untuk marah. Paling tidak ada tiga alasan. Pertama, bukan saya yang menentukan waktunya. Kedua, pemberitahuan yang dilakukan persis di waktu perjanjian, bukannya 1 atau 2 jam sebelumnya. Ketiga, nonton film woy! Kalau saja alasannya kebelet buang air besar, maka saya akan mengerti.
Jelas saya kesal.
Tapi lagi-lagi, kekesalan itu tidak tahu bagaimana harus saya keluarkan. Yang ada saya hanya diam. Tindakan yang tidak tepat sih kalau menurut saya.
Any suggestion?
Jul 27, 2008
Nonton Batman
Malam minggu kemarin saya nonton Batman: The Dark Knight bersama Riko. Biasanya malam minggu saya malas nonton, karena pasti ramainya minta ampun. Tapi kali ini tak apalah. Soalnya sudah lama tak bersua dengan Riko.
Benar saja, parkiran Blitz PVJ nyaris penuh. Kami terpaksa parkir di tempat yang areanya nyaris tak layak parkir saking sempitnya. Untung si Mumun langsing. Hehehe.
Filmnya dimulai jam 8 malam. Meskipun Riko sudah membeli tiketnya sejak jam 2 siang, tetap saja kami mendapat tempat duduk di baris C, baris ketiga dari depan. Wiii...
Untung filmnya bagus. Bagus sekali. Sekali.
Tak sia-sia rasanya kemacetan dan pegal di leher lantaran harus nonton sambil mendanga'.
Joker nya keren sekali. Mengerikan.
Batman, Jim Gordon dan Two Face juga lumayan.
Sayang saya tak suka Rachelnya. Sepertinya lebih cocok dimainkan Katie Holmes ups.. Katie Cruise, i mean...
Saya tak ingin menjadi spoiler buat Anda yang belum menonton. Soalnya film ini bagus. Jadi Anda tonton saja sendiri. Ini adalah film superhero dimana superheronya not so superhero. Manusiawi sekali.
Tapi saya tidak menyarankan anak-anak untuk menontonnya. Filmnya agak sadis. Hehe.
The moral I got from the film:
It doesn't matter what people judge about you. The only thing that matters when you have noble intention is the accomplishment of the mission itself. Not the appreciation from people because what you have done.
Waw, that's a huge lesson!
Benar saja, parkiran Blitz PVJ nyaris penuh. Kami terpaksa parkir di tempat yang areanya nyaris tak layak parkir saking sempitnya. Untung si Mumun langsing. Hehehe.
Filmnya dimulai jam 8 malam. Meskipun Riko sudah membeli tiketnya sejak jam 2 siang, tetap saja kami mendapat tempat duduk di baris C, baris ketiga dari depan. Wiii...
Untung filmnya bagus. Bagus sekali. Sekali.
Tak sia-sia rasanya kemacetan dan pegal di leher lantaran harus nonton sambil mendanga'.
Joker nya keren sekali. Mengerikan.
Batman, Jim Gordon dan Two Face juga lumayan.
Sayang saya tak suka Rachelnya. Sepertinya lebih cocok dimainkan Katie Holmes ups.. Katie Cruise, i mean...
Saya tak ingin menjadi spoiler buat Anda yang belum menonton. Soalnya film ini bagus. Jadi Anda tonton saja sendiri. Ini adalah film superhero dimana superheronya not so superhero. Manusiawi sekali.
Tapi saya tidak menyarankan anak-anak untuk menontonnya. Filmnya agak sadis. Hehe.
The moral I got from the film:
It doesn't matter what people judge about you. The only thing that matters when you have noble intention is the accomplishment of the mission itself. Not the appreciation from people because what you have done.
Waw, that's a huge lesson!
Jul 25, 2008
follow the crowd
Saya sedang menunggu untuk interview. Celingak celinguk, saya terlalu cepat setengah jam. Untunglah saya melihat ada tumpukan majalah di meja tengah.
I was actually hoping for Cosmopolitan or Elle but there were only World Oil and other magazines I had not know before.
Jadilah, World Oil.
Saya membaca cukup lama, dan hanya mengerti mungkin 10% nya. Sial.
And then I found these words in an anonymous advertise:
Success doesn't follow the crowd.
It's easy to go with the flow, but will it take you where you want to be?
It hit me quite hard in, somehow, perfect time.
I was actually hoping for Cosmopolitan or Elle but there were only World Oil and other magazines I had not know before.
Jadilah, World Oil.
Saya membaca cukup lama, dan hanya mengerti mungkin 10% nya. Sial.
And then I found these words in an anonymous advertise:
Success doesn't follow the crowd.
It's easy to go with the flow, but will it take you where you want to be?
It hit me quite hard in, somehow, perfect time.
Jul 22, 2008
Kosan Matters
Menurut saya ada dua hal krusial yang dihadapi mahasiswa baru terutama yang perantauan : ospek dan kosan.
Saya ingat betul sulitnya mencari kosan pertama bulan Agustus 2004 silam. Berbekal pengetahuan pas-pasan soal kota Bandung, saya dan Bapak mengubek-ubek daerah sekitar kampus mencari kemungkinan tersedianya ruangan untuk menampung saya.
People said practices makes perfect. Jika benar begitu, maka mestinya saya sudah mendekati sempurna. Karena saya tidak hanya dua, tiga, atau empat kali mencari yang namanya kosan. Tidak kawan. Selama 47 bulan saya hidup di Bandung, saya telah merasakan 6 kosan yang berbeda. Kalau dirata-rata, maka kira-kira setiap 8 bulan saya punya kosan baru. Bukan karena hobi, tapi memang selalu ada alasan untuk pindah.
Lagipula, seperti kata Steve Jobs: If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.
Hehehe.
Maka ijinkan saya berbagi sedikit pengetahuan saya tentang kos-kosan. Semoga berguna.
Mencari Kosan
Sejauh yang saya alami selama ini, ada tiga cara mencari kos-kosan.
Pertama, lewat agen.
Saya pernah mencoba menggunakan jasa agen kos-kosan La Maison. Anda bisa langsung datang ke kantornya di Jl Dr Eyckman atau minta dikirimkan (tentunya ada ongkos kirim).
Dulu sih dengan 25 ribu rupiah saya memperoleh daftar alamat kos-kosan di lokasi-lokasi yang telah saya pilih sebelumnya. Dilengkapi berbagai keterangan seperti kosan cewek/cowok/campur, luas kamar, fasilitas, peraturan (seperti ada/tidaknya jam malam dsb), harga plus nomor telepon agar Anda bisa langsung berhubungan dengan si induk semang.
Mudah sekali ya? Ya, Anda tinggal menyesuaikan criteria Anda dengan criteria kosan yang ditawarkan, bila Anda berminat tinggal ditelepon atau didatangi.
Sayangnya, info yang tersedia kurang akurat.
Contoh, saya pernah tertarik dengan profil kamar berukuran 6x4 meter. Namun begitu saya jambangi alamat yang bersangkutan, ternyata yang ada adalah kamar berukuran 6x4 meter dibagi 2. Sial!
Harga yang tercantum pun kadang tidak sesuai setelah saya mengecek ke pemiliknya. Demikian pula dengan fasilitas.
Memang ada juga sih yang sesuai antara kenyataan dan profil, tapi mungkin belum saya temukan saja. Haha.
Cara kedua adalah lewat teman.
Yap, disinilah the power of networking diterapkan. Haha, berlebihan.
Modalnya adalah sering-sering berkunjung ke kosan teman-teman Anda. Mungkin suatu kali Anda akan menemukan bahwa kosan teman Anda ini tidak beda jauh atau bahkan sama persis dengan kosan impian Anda. Bila Anda sudah menemukan kosan impian ini, maka segeralah katakan pada teman Anda bahwa Anda ingin ingin ingiiiiin sekali tinggal di kosan itu. Dengungkan terus keinginan Anda itu tiap kali Anda bertemu teman Anda.
Niscaya lama kelamaan ia akan ngeh dan langsung menghubungi Anda bila ada kamar di kosannya yang akan kosong.
Kalau Anda tidak punya cukup waktu untuk sering-sering berkunjung ke kosan teman, Anda bisa coba cara ini:
di tengah perbincangan yang melibatkan cukup banyak orang, lontarkan keinginan Anda untuk mencari kosan baru. Lalu ungkapkan apa saja kriteria yang Anda inginkan dari kosan impian Anda. Kamudian, langsung tembak asal saja “Eh, kosan si Anu itu enak gak ya?”, tentunya si Anu ini adalah orang yang juga dikenal oleh orang-orang dalam perbincangan. Mungkin Anda akan mendapat jawaban, “Nggak tau deeeehh…”atau “Nggak kayaknya”, it’s okay.
Karena meskipun Anda mendapat jawaban negatif, umumnya setelahnya orang-orang akan mulai memberi saran kepada Anda, seperti begini, “kosan si Itu kayaknya lumayan tuh”.
Istilah (terlalu) kerennya Focus Group Discussion. Dengan cara begini, Anda memanfaatkan pengalaman orang lain yang sudah pernah ke kosan si Anu, si Itu, dan si lainlain.
Cara ketiga, door to door.
Ini adalah cara paling desperate tapi sebenarnya cukup efektif. Simpel saja, datanglah ke sebuah kawasan, lalu datangi satpam yang ada disana, kemudian tanyakan disekitar lokasi tersebut dimana saja ada kosan. Kalau tidak ada satpam, Anda bisa bertanya pada ibu-ibu warung, tukang ojeg, tukang lontong kari, atau tukang-tukang lain yang ada di sekitar sana.
Mereka umumnya adalah orang-orang yang paling aware tentang keberadaan sebuah kosan karena pelanggan mereka juga anak-anak kosan.
Kalau kebetulan lokasi yang Anda tuju sepi dan tak tampak keberadaan orang-orang yang saya sebutkan di atas, Anda bisa lakukan ini: pilih satu rumah yang menurut Anda paling mirip kosan. Misalnya rumah tingkat, rumah dengan beberapa motor dan mobil, rumah dengan dua pintu masuk dsb. Tekan bel nya, lalu tunggu hingga ada orang keluar. Setelah ada orang yang keluar, maka bertanyalah: “Ini kosan Pak/Bu?”, bila Anda beruntung maka orang tersebut akan menjawab iya atau menganggukkan kepala. Bila ia tidak melakukan dua hal di atas, setidaknya tanyalah kembali: “Ou, maaf. Kalo di sekitar sini ada kosan nggak ya? Dimana?”. Kalau Anda sial, maka ia akan berkata tidak tahu atau melengos pergi tanpa mengatakan apa-apa. It’s okay. Masih ada rumah di sebelahnya kan?
**
Berdasarkan pengalaman, saya tidak pernah sukses dengan cara pertama. Dengan cara kedua saya sukses 3 kali. Dan 3 kali juga dengan cara ketiga.
Satu hal penting yang harus Anda perhatikan sebelum mencari kosan adalah menentukan kriteria kosan seperti apa yang Anda mau. Yang biasanya menjadi pertimbangan adalah lokasi, fasilitas, bangunan fisik, harga dll. Prioritasnya tergantung kondisi Anda. Saya akan jelaskan lebih lanjut di postingan berikutnya. Sekarang saya lapar dan mau makan siang dulu.
Dadah.
Saya ingat betul sulitnya mencari kosan pertama bulan Agustus 2004 silam. Berbekal pengetahuan pas-pasan soal kota Bandung, saya dan Bapak mengubek-ubek daerah sekitar kampus mencari kemungkinan tersedianya ruangan untuk menampung saya.
People said practices makes perfect. Jika benar begitu, maka mestinya saya sudah mendekati sempurna. Karena saya tidak hanya dua, tiga, atau empat kali mencari yang namanya kosan. Tidak kawan. Selama 47 bulan saya hidup di Bandung, saya telah merasakan 6 kosan yang berbeda. Kalau dirata-rata, maka kira-kira setiap 8 bulan saya punya kosan baru. Bukan karena hobi, tapi memang selalu ada alasan untuk pindah.
Lagipula, seperti kata Steve Jobs: If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.
Hehehe.
Maka ijinkan saya berbagi sedikit pengetahuan saya tentang kos-kosan. Semoga berguna.
Mencari Kosan
Sejauh yang saya alami selama ini, ada tiga cara mencari kos-kosan.
Pertama, lewat agen.
Saya pernah mencoba menggunakan jasa agen kos-kosan La Maison. Anda bisa langsung datang ke kantornya di Jl Dr Eyckman atau minta dikirimkan (tentunya ada ongkos kirim).
Dulu sih dengan 25 ribu rupiah saya memperoleh daftar alamat kos-kosan di lokasi-lokasi yang telah saya pilih sebelumnya. Dilengkapi berbagai keterangan seperti kosan cewek/cowok/campur, luas kamar, fasilitas, peraturan (seperti ada/tidaknya jam malam dsb), harga plus nomor telepon agar Anda bisa langsung berhubungan dengan si induk semang.
Mudah sekali ya? Ya, Anda tinggal menyesuaikan criteria Anda dengan criteria kosan yang ditawarkan, bila Anda berminat tinggal ditelepon atau didatangi.
Sayangnya, info yang tersedia kurang akurat.
Contoh, saya pernah tertarik dengan profil kamar berukuran 6x4 meter. Namun begitu saya jambangi alamat yang bersangkutan, ternyata yang ada adalah kamar berukuran 6x4 meter dibagi 2. Sial!
Harga yang tercantum pun kadang tidak sesuai setelah saya mengecek ke pemiliknya. Demikian pula dengan fasilitas.
Memang ada juga sih yang sesuai antara kenyataan dan profil, tapi mungkin belum saya temukan saja. Haha.
Cara kedua adalah lewat teman.
Yap, disinilah the power of networking diterapkan. Haha, berlebihan.
Modalnya adalah sering-sering berkunjung ke kosan teman-teman Anda. Mungkin suatu kali Anda akan menemukan bahwa kosan teman Anda ini tidak beda jauh atau bahkan sama persis dengan kosan impian Anda. Bila Anda sudah menemukan kosan impian ini, maka segeralah katakan pada teman Anda bahwa Anda ingin ingin ingiiiiin sekali tinggal di kosan itu. Dengungkan terus keinginan Anda itu tiap kali Anda bertemu teman Anda.
Niscaya lama kelamaan ia akan ngeh dan langsung menghubungi Anda bila ada kamar di kosannya yang akan kosong.
Kalau Anda tidak punya cukup waktu untuk sering-sering berkunjung ke kosan teman, Anda bisa coba cara ini:
di tengah perbincangan yang melibatkan cukup banyak orang, lontarkan keinginan Anda untuk mencari kosan baru. Lalu ungkapkan apa saja kriteria yang Anda inginkan dari kosan impian Anda. Kamudian, langsung tembak asal saja “Eh, kosan si Anu itu enak gak ya?”, tentunya si Anu ini adalah orang yang juga dikenal oleh orang-orang dalam perbincangan. Mungkin Anda akan mendapat jawaban, “Nggak tau deeeehh…”atau “Nggak kayaknya”, it’s okay.
Karena meskipun Anda mendapat jawaban negatif, umumnya setelahnya orang-orang akan mulai memberi saran kepada Anda, seperti begini, “kosan si Itu kayaknya lumayan tuh”.
Istilah (terlalu) kerennya Focus Group Discussion. Dengan cara begini, Anda memanfaatkan pengalaman orang lain yang sudah pernah ke kosan si Anu, si Itu, dan si lainlain.
Cara ketiga, door to door.
Ini adalah cara paling desperate tapi sebenarnya cukup efektif. Simpel saja, datanglah ke sebuah kawasan, lalu datangi satpam yang ada disana, kemudian tanyakan disekitar lokasi tersebut dimana saja ada kosan. Kalau tidak ada satpam, Anda bisa bertanya pada ibu-ibu warung, tukang ojeg, tukang lontong kari, atau tukang-tukang lain yang ada di sekitar sana.
Mereka umumnya adalah orang-orang yang paling aware tentang keberadaan sebuah kosan karena pelanggan mereka juga anak-anak kosan.
Kalau kebetulan lokasi yang Anda tuju sepi dan tak tampak keberadaan orang-orang yang saya sebutkan di atas, Anda bisa lakukan ini: pilih satu rumah yang menurut Anda paling mirip kosan. Misalnya rumah tingkat, rumah dengan beberapa motor dan mobil, rumah dengan dua pintu masuk dsb. Tekan bel nya, lalu tunggu hingga ada orang keluar. Setelah ada orang yang keluar, maka bertanyalah: “Ini kosan Pak/Bu?”, bila Anda beruntung maka orang tersebut akan menjawab iya atau menganggukkan kepala. Bila ia tidak melakukan dua hal di atas, setidaknya tanyalah kembali: “Ou, maaf. Kalo di sekitar sini ada kosan nggak ya? Dimana?”. Kalau Anda sial, maka ia akan berkata tidak tahu atau melengos pergi tanpa mengatakan apa-apa. It’s okay. Masih ada rumah di sebelahnya kan?
**
Berdasarkan pengalaman, saya tidak pernah sukses dengan cara pertama. Dengan cara kedua saya sukses 3 kali. Dan 3 kali juga dengan cara ketiga.
Satu hal penting yang harus Anda perhatikan sebelum mencari kosan adalah menentukan kriteria kosan seperti apa yang Anda mau. Yang biasanya menjadi pertimbangan adalah lokasi, fasilitas, bangunan fisik, harga dll. Prioritasnya tergantung kondisi Anda. Saya akan jelaskan lebih lanjut di postingan berikutnya. Sekarang saya lapar dan mau makan siang dulu.
Dadah.
Jul 13, 2008
Favorit
Saya bukan penggila musik klasik, tapi saya sukaaa sekali lagu yang satu ini.
Etude Op. 10 No. 3 by Chopin
Tahun 1953, Bob Russel menulis lirik untuk lagu ini, judulnya No Other Love.
Please enjoy!
PS. Awalnya saya tahu lagu ini karena lagu ini adalah salah satu soundtrack di serial Proposal 101.
Etude Op. 10 No. 3 by Chopin
Tahun 1953, Bob Russel menulis lirik untuk lagu ini, judulnya No Other Love.
Please enjoy!
PS. Awalnya saya tahu lagu ini karena lagu ini adalah salah satu soundtrack di serial Proposal 101.
Jul 5, 2008
101st Proposal (2)
Saya harap Anda masih ingat dengan Tetsuro, tokoh serial Jepang lawas berjudul Proposal 101 yang pernah saya tulis di sini. Karena saya sudah memulai cerita mengenai si Tetsuro ini, maka saya berniat menceritakan endingnya.
Sampai mana ya ceritanya waktu itu?
Oia, ceritanya sampai ketika Kaoru mulai bingung memutuskan antara Tetsuro atau orang yang sangat mirip dengan tunangannya yang telah meninggal.
Kaoru memilih si pria yang mirip tunangannya dahulu (mulai sekarang kita sebut saja dia Makabe, yaitu nama tunangan Kaoru).
Kaoru dapat merasakan jantungnya berdebar kencang setiap kali bertemu. Kaoru mengagumi Makabe. Sangat.
Hal ini yang tidak ia rasakan ketika bersama Tetsuro. Tentu saja Tetsuro baik. Sangat sangat baik dan sangat sangat mencintai Kaoru. Ia mengagumi Tetsuro untuk itu. Tapi kekaguman ini berbeda dengan yang ia rasakan pada Makabe.
Makabe mengagumkan untuk hal yang berbeda. Untuk hal-hal yang bahkan baru dimengerti oleh Kaoru.
Pernikahan pun disiapkan.
FYI, Makabe ini konon adalah duda beranak satu. Dan suatu hari, ketika Kaoru akan menjemput anaknya Makabe dari sekolah, ia bertemu dengan mantan istri Makabe.
Tenang saja, tidak ada adegan pandang-pandangan tajam dengan gambar bolak balik antara Kaoru dan mantan istri Makabe seperti yang sering ada di sinetron-sinetron kita.
Mereka justru duduk bersama menemani si anak bermain. Penasaran, Kaoru pun bertanya pada mantan istri Makabe ini, apa sebab ia bercerai dari Makabe?
Cerita pun mengalir.
Pada awalnya mereka adalah pasangan bahagia. Menikah muda dan mapan secara finansial. Namun semakin hari, Makabe semakin tenggelam dalam pekerjaannya. Ia telalu terobsesi dengan pencapaiannya dengan pekerjaannya. Pada akhirnya sang istri tak lagi merasa mengenal suaminya. Mereka pun bercerai.
Mantan istri Makabe ini bercerita, saat ini ia pun sedang mempersiapkan pernikahan keduanya dengan sesorang yang ia sebut sebagai sangat baik dan rendah hati. Pria ini memang tidak semenarik Makabe, namun ia mampu membuat mantan istri Makabe ini merasa nyaman dan aman.
Maka Kaoru pun kembali bimbang.
Dan saya harus mengakui bahwa saya lupa kelanjutannya. Hahaha.
Saya lupa bagaimana terjadinya, tapi di akhir cerita Kaoru kembali bersama Tetsuro.
Memang saya tidak menceritakannya dengan klimaks, tapi percayalah adegan terakhir dari drama Jepang ini sangat sangat bagus. Saya sampai bingung bagaimana cara menceritakannya, lebih baik Anda tonton sendiri saja.
**
Moral of the story:
Memang menyenangkan bisa bersama orang yang Anda kagumi, tapi bisa bersama orang yang sangat mengerti Anda dan bisa membuat Anda merasa nyaman juga tidak kalah menyenangkan. Dan biasanya, lebih sulit menemukan orang jenis kedua ini.
Sampai mana ya ceritanya waktu itu?
Oia, ceritanya sampai ketika Kaoru mulai bingung memutuskan antara Tetsuro atau orang yang sangat mirip dengan tunangannya yang telah meninggal.
Kaoru memilih si pria yang mirip tunangannya dahulu (mulai sekarang kita sebut saja dia Makabe, yaitu nama tunangan Kaoru).
Kaoru dapat merasakan jantungnya berdebar kencang setiap kali bertemu. Kaoru mengagumi Makabe. Sangat.
Hal ini yang tidak ia rasakan ketika bersama Tetsuro. Tentu saja Tetsuro baik. Sangat sangat baik dan sangat sangat mencintai Kaoru. Ia mengagumi Tetsuro untuk itu. Tapi kekaguman ini berbeda dengan yang ia rasakan pada Makabe.
Makabe mengagumkan untuk hal yang berbeda. Untuk hal-hal yang bahkan baru dimengerti oleh Kaoru.
Pernikahan pun disiapkan.
FYI, Makabe ini konon adalah duda beranak satu. Dan suatu hari, ketika Kaoru akan menjemput anaknya Makabe dari sekolah, ia bertemu dengan mantan istri Makabe.
Tenang saja, tidak ada adegan pandang-pandangan tajam dengan gambar bolak balik antara Kaoru dan mantan istri Makabe seperti yang sering ada di sinetron-sinetron kita.
Mereka justru duduk bersama menemani si anak bermain. Penasaran, Kaoru pun bertanya pada mantan istri Makabe ini, apa sebab ia bercerai dari Makabe?
Cerita pun mengalir.
Pada awalnya mereka adalah pasangan bahagia. Menikah muda dan mapan secara finansial. Namun semakin hari, Makabe semakin tenggelam dalam pekerjaannya. Ia telalu terobsesi dengan pencapaiannya dengan pekerjaannya. Pada akhirnya sang istri tak lagi merasa mengenal suaminya. Mereka pun bercerai.
Mantan istri Makabe ini bercerita, saat ini ia pun sedang mempersiapkan pernikahan keduanya dengan sesorang yang ia sebut sebagai sangat baik dan rendah hati. Pria ini memang tidak semenarik Makabe, namun ia mampu membuat mantan istri Makabe ini merasa nyaman dan aman.
Maka Kaoru pun kembali bimbang.
Dan saya harus mengakui bahwa saya lupa kelanjutannya. Hahaha.
Saya lupa bagaimana terjadinya, tapi di akhir cerita Kaoru kembali bersama Tetsuro.
Memang saya tidak menceritakannya dengan klimaks, tapi percayalah adegan terakhir dari drama Jepang ini sangat sangat bagus. Saya sampai bingung bagaimana cara menceritakannya, lebih baik Anda tonton sendiri saja.
**
Moral of the story:
Memang menyenangkan bisa bersama orang yang Anda kagumi, tapi bisa bersama orang yang sangat mengerti Anda dan bisa membuat Anda merasa nyaman juga tidak kalah menyenangkan. Dan biasanya, lebih sulit menemukan orang jenis kedua ini.
Jun 3, 2008
Sulitnya menjadi anak-anak
Beberapa waktu lalu Bapak saya mengirimi cerita ini via email. Salah satu gambaran children labour yang menyalahgunakan nama agama. Bukannya tak mungkin kisah semacam ini terjadi juga di sekitar kita.
Siapkan 10 menit waktu Anda ke depan untuk membaca kisah ini. :)
(By :RUKMINI CALLIMACHI, Associated Press Writer)
DAKAR, Senegal - On the day he decided to run away, 9-year-old Coli awoke on a filthy mat. Like a pup, he lay curled against the cold, pressed between dozens of other children sleeping head-to-toe on the concrete floor. His T-shirt was damp with the dew that seeped through the thin walls. The older boys had yanked away the square of cloth he used to protect himself from the draft. He shivered.
It was still dark as he set out for the mouth of a freeway with the other boys, a tribe of 7-, 8- and 9-year-old beggars.
Coli padded barefoot between the stopped cars, his head reaching only halfway up the windows. His scrawny body disappeared under a ragged T-shirt that grazed his knees. He held up an empty tomato paste can as his begging bowl.
There are 1.2 million Colis in the world today, children trafficked to work for the benefit of others. Those who lure them into servitude make $15 billion annually, according to the International Labor Organization.
It's big business in Senegal. In the capital of Dakar alone, at least 7,600 child beggars work the streets, according to a study released in February by the ILO, the United Nations Children's Fund and the World Bank. The children collect an average of 300 African francs a day, just 72 cents, reaping their keepers $2 million a year.
Most of the boys — 90 percent, the study found — are sent out to beg under the cover of Islam, placing the problem at the complicated intersection of greed and tradition. For among the cruelest facts of Coli's life is that he was not stolen from his family. He was brought to Dakar with their blessing to learn Islam's holy book.
In the name of religion, Coli spent two hours a day memorizing verses from the Quran and over nine hours begging to pad the pockets of the man he called his teacher.
It was getting dark. Coli had less than half the 72 cents he was told to bring back. He was afraid. He knew what happened to children who failed to meet their daily quotas.
They were stripped and doused in cold water. The older boys picked them up like hammocks by their ankles and wrists. Then the teacher whipped them with an electrical cord until the cord ate their skin.
Coli's head hurt with hunger. He could already feel the slice of the wire on his back.He slipped away, losing himself in a tide of honking cars. He had 20 cents in his tomato can.
______________________
Three years ago, a man wearing a skullcap came to Coli's village in the neighboring country of Guinea-Bissau and asked for him.
Coli's parents immediately addressed the man as "Serigne," a term of respect for Muslim leaders on Africa's western coast. Many poor villagers believe that giving a Muslim holy man a child to educate will gain an entire family entrance to paradise.
Since the 11th century, families have sent their sons to study at the Quranic schools that flourished on Africa's western seaboard with the rise of Islam. It is forbidden to charge for an Islamic education, so the students, known as talibe, studied for free with their marabouts, or spiritual teachers. In return, the children worked in the marabout's fields.
The droughts of the late 1970s and '80s forced many schools to move to cities, where their income began to revolve around begging. Today, children continue to flock to the cities, as food and work in villages run short.
Not all Quranic boarding schools force their students to beg. But for the most part, what was once an esteemed form of education has degenerated into child trafficking. Nowadays, Quranic instructors net as many children as they can to increase their daily take.
"If you do the math, you'll find that these people are earning more than a government functionary," said Souleymane Bachir Diagne, an Islamic scholar at Columbia University. "It's why the phenomenon is so hard to eradicate."
Middle men trawl for children as far afield as the dunes of Mauritania and the grass-covered huts of Mali. It's become a booming, regional trade that ensnares children as young as 2, who don't know the name of their village or how to return home.
One of the largest clusters of Quranic schools lies in the poor, sand-enveloped neighborhoods on either side of the freeway leading into Dakar.
This is where Coli's marabout squats in a half-finished house whose floor stirs with flies. Amadu Buwaro sleeps on a mattress covered in white linens. The 30 children in his care sleep in another room with dirty blankets on the floor. It smells rotten and wet, like a soaked rag.
Buwaro is a thin man in his 30s who wears a pressed olive robe and digital watch. The children wear T-shirts black with filth. He expects them to beg to pay the rent, because there are no fields here to till.
But their earnings far exceed his rent of $50. If the boys meet their quotas, they bring in around $650 a month in a nation where the average person earns $150.
Buwaro expects the children to suffer to learn the Quran, just as he did at the hands of his teacher.
So when Coli failed to return, Buwaro was furious. He flipped open his flashy silver cell phone and called another marabout who kept a blue planner with names of runaway boys. The list stretched down the page. He added Coli's name.
__________________
His tomato can tucked under one arm, Coli jumped on the back of a bus, holding on to the swinging rear door. He was hundreds of miles from the village where he grew up speaking Peuhl, a language not commonly heard in Dakar.
He could not ask the Senegalese for help. So he got directions in Peuhl from other child beggars, who like him were trafficked here from the zone of green savannah just outside Senegal.
Coli made his way to a neighborhood where he had heard of a place that gave free food to children like him.
"Do you know where you come from?" asked the kind-faced woman at Empire des Enfants. The shelter's capacity is 30 children, but it usually houses at least 50.
Coli knew the name of his mother, but not how to reach her. He knew the name of the region where he was born, but not his village. "My mother is black," he said. "I'm sure I'll recognize her."
The shelter worker told Coli what to do if his marabout came. We will protect you, she said. If he tries to grab you, scream.
Days went by. Maybe weeks.
Then Coli's marabout arrived.
In 2005, Senegal made it a crime punishable by five years in prison to force a child to beg. But the same law makes an exception for children begging for religious reasons. Few dare to cross marabouts for fear of supernatural retaliation.
Coli's marabout entered the shelter flanked by a column of religious leaders in cascading robes that tumbled onto the ground. One of them stabbed his finger at the clouds and yelled out, "The sky will fall down on you if you don't hand over our children."
The shelter is used to such threats. But this time the marabouts had discovered the center's legal paperwork was not complete. They threatened to close the shelter if it did not hand over 11 boys.
To save more than 40 others, the shelter handed over the 11. Coli was on the list.
Back at the school, they beat the 9-year-old until he thought he was going to faint. At night, they dragged him off the floor, doused him in water and beat him again.
Three days later, he ran away again. When he arrived at the shelter, he said: "I want to go home to my mom."
_________________
To find Coli's mother, aid workers broadcast his name on the radio in Guinea-Bissau. The names of over a dozen children also from Guinea-Bissau played in a continuous loop, like sonic homing pigeons trying to find their target.
No response. Some boys worried their parents might be dead.
"I'm sure my mother is still alive," Coli reasoned. "When I left her she was well, so why wouldn't she be well now?" Underneath his bright eyes is another worry.
Will she be angry that he disobeyed his teacher?
Over the past two years, the International Organization for Migration has returned over 600 child beggars to their homes. Several had been hit by cars. Some had scars on their backs. One 10-year-old was so hungry he ate out of the trash. Soon after he returned home, he vomited worms and died.
Almost all the boys had begged on behalf of Quranic instructors in Senegal.
"Cultural habits have been manipulated for the sake of exploitation," said the IOM's Laurent de Boeck, deputy regional representative for West and Central Africa.
Two months went by before a shelter worker pulled Coli aside. His parents were alive.
__________________________
The 13 boys from Guinea-Bissau pile into a bus. Coli screams with glee as it takes off for the airport.
"Is this Guinea-Bissau?" one of them asks as they descend onto the cracked runway and enter the small airport of the nation's capital. "Senegal looks better," says another.
Though Senegal is among the world's poorest nations, it's visibly more developed than Guinea-Bissau, listed 160th out of 177 countries on the U.N.'s human development index. The capital they left had streets clogged with taxis and flashy 4-by-4s. The buildings were tall. The capital they returned to has squat, low buildings and crumbling colonial villas.
"I'm not sure I like it," Coli confides.
As the bus leaves the capital, they pass villages of cone-shaped huts and fields where boys herd bulls. They sing songs, clapping their hands. As they pull into the shelter where their parents were told to expect them, the boys fall silent.
Timidly, they file off the bus. A few of the 12- and 13-year-olds recognize their families. They approach them respectfully, shaking hands.
Coli's mother is not there.
___________________
A judge tells the parents they will be jailed if they send their children away to beg again. They have to sign a statement promising to protect their boys from traffickers. Most are illiterate, so they leave a thumbprint in blue ink next to their names.
"You sent your kids to hell," the judge says. "You can't say that because you are poor you're going to allow your kids to be abused."
His booming voice ricochets off the cracked walls of the building. The parents stare straight ahead.
But the conditions that made these families send their children to hell still persist.
Many of the villages do not have enough food. Few have schools. In one, the schoolhouse is a bamboo enclosure that doubles as an animal corral. "We haven't had classes here in over a year," an elderly man says as he ducks into the classroom and skirts a pile of bull manure.
The aid group pays for school fees and supplies. But the stipend cannot cover the economic worth of a child. Some of the children returned in previous months now work as bricklayers and goatherds. Others have already been sent back to the marabouts by their parents. The idea of child trafficking as a crime is so new in the region that no African language has a word for it, experts say.
With each passing day, more parents and relatives come, but not Coli's.
On the third day, the shelter pays for another radio address.
By the fourth, half the 13 children are gone.
The others become increasingly agitated. Maybe the radio is broken, Coli muses. His wet eyes fill with the invisible color of worry.
_________________________
Early on the fifth morning, a woman in a pressed peach robe walks up to the shelter.
Coli rushes outside. He stands a few feet away as tears topple down his cheeks. She covers her face with her veil and weeps.
The two sit side-by-side in plastic chairs. Coli's mother looks at her feet. Her family is poor, she says, and she wanted Coli to get an education. It took her several days to reach the shelter because she didn't have $2 for the bus fare.
For more than an hour, Coli cries. Tears run down either side of his cheeks, forming two watery garlands. They meet at his chin and plop down on his collar bone, pooling above his shirt.
She stands up and wipes his chin. They leave, crossing the dusty boulevard.
Her arm reaches around his shoulder and the long sleeve of her robe falls around the little boy. It hides him from the remaining children, who silently watch Coli go home.
_____________________________
EPILOGUE:
Soon after Coli left, his marabout traveled to Guinea-Bissau. He angrily demanded to know why Coli had run away.
Ashamed, Coli's father promised to make up for the boy's bad behavior.
He is sending the marabout two more sons.
Siapkan 10 menit waktu Anda ke depan untuk membaca kisah ini. :)
(By :RUKMINI CALLIMACHI, Associated Press Writer)
DAKAR, Senegal - On the day he decided to run away, 9-year-old Coli awoke on a filthy mat. Like a pup, he lay curled against the cold, pressed between dozens of other children sleeping head-to-toe on the concrete floor. His T-shirt was damp with the dew that seeped through the thin walls. The older boys had yanked away the square of cloth he used to protect himself from the draft. He shivered.
It was still dark as he set out for the mouth of a freeway with the other boys, a tribe of 7-, 8- and 9-year-old beggars.
Coli padded barefoot between the stopped cars, his head reaching only halfway up the windows. His scrawny body disappeared under a ragged T-shirt that grazed his knees. He held up an empty tomato paste can as his begging bowl.
There are 1.2 million Colis in the world today, children trafficked to work for the benefit of others. Those who lure them into servitude make $15 billion annually, according to the International Labor Organization.
It's big business in Senegal. In the capital of Dakar alone, at least 7,600 child beggars work the streets, according to a study released in February by the ILO, the United Nations Children's Fund and the World Bank. The children collect an average of 300 African francs a day, just 72 cents, reaping their keepers $2 million a year.
Most of the boys — 90 percent, the study found — are sent out to beg under the cover of Islam, placing the problem at the complicated intersection of greed and tradition. For among the cruelest facts of Coli's life is that he was not stolen from his family. He was brought to Dakar with their blessing to learn Islam's holy book.
In the name of religion, Coli spent two hours a day memorizing verses from the Quran and over nine hours begging to pad the pockets of the man he called his teacher.
It was getting dark. Coli had less than half the 72 cents he was told to bring back. He was afraid. He knew what happened to children who failed to meet their daily quotas.
They were stripped and doused in cold water. The older boys picked them up like hammocks by their ankles and wrists. Then the teacher whipped them with an electrical cord until the cord ate their skin.
Coli's head hurt with hunger. He could already feel the slice of the wire on his back.He slipped away, losing himself in a tide of honking cars. He had 20 cents in his tomato can.
______________________
Three years ago, a man wearing a skullcap came to Coli's village in the neighboring country of Guinea-Bissau and asked for him.
Coli's parents immediately addressed the man as "Serigne," a term of respect for Muslim leaders on Africa's western coast. Many poor villagers believe that giving a Muslim holy man a child to educate will gain an entire family entrance to paradise.
Since the 11th century, families have sent their sons to study at the Quranic schools that flourished on Africa's western seaboard with the rise of Islam. It is forbidden to charge for an Islamic education, so the students, known as talibe, studied for free with their marabouts, or spiritual teachers. In return, the children worked in the marabout's fields.
The droughts of the late 1970s and '80s forced many schools to move to cities, where their income began to revolve around begging. Today, children continue to flock to the cities, as food and work in villages run short.
Not all Quranic boarding schools force their students to beg. But for the most part, what was once an esteemed form of education has degenerated into child trafficking. Nowadays, Quranic instructors net as many children as they can to increase their daily take.
"If you do the math, you'll find that these people are earning more than a government functionary," said Souleymane Bachir Diagne, an Islamic scholar at Columbia University. "It's why the phenomenon is so hard to eradicate."
Middle men trawl for children as far afield as the dunes of Mauritania and the grass-covered huts of Mali. It's become a booming, regional trade that ensnares children as young as 2, who don't know the name of their village or how to return home.
One of the largest clusters of Quranic schools lies in the poor, sand-enveloped neighborhoods on either side of the freeway leading into Dakar.
This is where Coli's marabout squats in a half-finished house whose floor stirs with flies. Amadu Buwaro sleeps on a mattress covered in white linens. The 30 children in his care sleep in another room with dirty blankets on the floor. It smells rotten and wet, like a soaked rag.
Buwaro is a thin man in his 30s who wears a pressed olive robe and digital watch. The children wear T-shirts black with filth. He expects them to beg to pay the rent, because there are no fields here to till.
But their earnings far exceed his rent of $50. If the boys meet their quotas, they bring in around $650 a month in a nation where the average person earns $150.
Buwaro expects the children to suffer to learn the Quran, just as he did at the hands of his teacher.
So when Coli failed to return, Buwaro was furious. He flipped open his flashy silver cell phone and called another marabout who kept a blue planner with names of runaway boys. The list stretched down the page. He added Coli's name.
__________________
His tomato can tucked under one arm, Coli jumped on the back of a bus, holding on to the swinging rear door. He was hundreds of miles from the village where he grew up speaking Peuhl, a language not commonly heard in Dakar.
He could not ask the Senegalese for help. So he got directions in Peuhl from other child beggars, who like him were trafficked here from the zone of green savannah just outside Senegal.
Coli made his way to a neighborhood where he had heard of a place that gave free food to children like him.
"Do you know where you come from?" asked the kind-faced woman at Empire des Enfants. The shelter's capacity is 30 children, but it usually houses at least 50.
Coli knew the name of his mother, but not how to reach her. He knew the name of the region where he was born, but not his village. "My mother is black," he said. "I'm sure I'll recognize her."
The shelter worker told Coli what to do if his marabout came. We will protect you, she said. If he tries to grab you, scream.
Days went by. Maybe weeks.
Then Coli's marabout arrived.
In 2005, Senegal made it a crime punishable by five years in prison to force a child to beg. But the same law makes an exception for children begging for religious reasons. Few dare to cross marabouts for fear of supernatural retaliation.
Coli's marabout entered the shelter flanked by a column of religious leaders in cascading robes that tumbled onto the ground. One of them stabbed his finger at the clouds and yelled out, "The sky will fall down on you if you don't hand over our children."
The shelter is used to such threats. But this time the marabouts had discovered the center's legal paperwork was not complete. They threatened to close the shelter if it did not hand over 11 boys.
To save more than 40 others, the shelter handed over the 11. Coli was on the list.
Back at the school, they beat the 9-year-old until he thought he was going to faint. At night, they dragged him off the floor, doused him in water and beat him again.
Three days later, he ran away again. When he arrived at the shelter, he said: "I want to go home to my mom."
_________________
To find Coli's mother, aid workers broadcast his name on the radio in Guinea-Bissau. The names of over a dozen children also from Guinea-Bissau played in a continuous loop, like sonic homing pigeons trying to find their target.
No response. Some boys worried their parents might be dead.
"I'm sure my mother is still alive," Coli reasoned. "When I left her she was well, so why wouldn't she be well now?" Underneath his bright eyes is another worry.
Will she be angry that he disobeyed his teacher?
Over the past two years, the International Organization for Migration has returned over 600 child beggars to their homes. Several had been hit by cars. Some had scars on their backs. One 10-year-old was so hungry he ate out of the trash. Soon after he returned home, he vomited worms and died.
Almost all the boys had begged on behalf of Quranic instructors in Senegal.
"Cultural habits have been manipulated for the sake of exploitation," said the IOM's Laurent de Boeck, deputy regional representative for West and Central Africa.
Two months went by before a shelter worker pulled Coli aside. His parents were alive.
__________________________
The 13 boys from Guinea-Bissau pile into a bus. Coli screams with glee as it takes off for the airport.
"Is this Guinea-Bissau?" one of them asks as they descend onto the cracked runway and enter the small airport of the nation's capital. "Senegal looks better," says another.
Though Senegal is among the world's poorest nations, it's visibly more developed than Guinea-Bissau, listed 160th out of 177 countries on the U.N.'s human development index. The capital they left had streets clogged with taxis and flashy 4-by-4s. The buildings were tall. The capital they returned to has squat, low buildings and crumbling colonial villas.
"I'm not sure I like it," Coli confides.
As the bus leaves the capital, they pass villages of cone-shaped huts and fields where boys herd bulls. They sing songs, clapping their hands. As they pull into the shelter where their parents were told to expect them, the boys fall silent.
Timidly, they file off the bus. A few of the 12- and 13-year-olds recognize their families. They approach them respectfully, shaking hands.
Coli's mother is not there.
___________________
A judge tells the parents they will be jailed if they send their children away to beg again. They have to sign a statement promising to protect their boys from traffickers. Most are illiterate, so they leave a thumbprint in blue ink next to their names.
"You sent your kids to hell," the judge says. "You can't say that because you are poor you're going to allow your kids to be abused."
His booming voice ricochets off the cracked walls of the building. The parents stare straight ahead.
But the conditions that made these families send their children to hell still persist.
Many of the villages do not have enough food. Few have schools. In one, the schoolhouse is a bamboo enclosure that doubles as an animal corral. "We haven't had classes here in over a year," an elderly man says as he ducks into the classroom and skirts a pile of bull manure.
The aid group pays for school fees and supplies. But the stipend cannot cover the economic worth of a child. Some of the children returned in previous months now work as bricklayers and goatherds. Others have already been sent back to the marabouts by their parents. The idea of child trafficking as a crime is so new in the region that no African language has a word for it, experts say.
With each passing day, more parents and relatives come, but not Coli's.
On the third day, the shelter pays for another radio address.
By the fourth, half the 13 children are gone.
The others become increasingly agitated. Maybe the radio is broken, Coli muses. His wet eyes fill with the invisible color of worry.
_________________________
Early on the fifth morning, a woman in a pressed peach robe walks up to the shelter.
Coli rushes outside. He stands a few feet away as tears topple down his cheeks. She covers her face with her veil and weeps.
The two sit side-by-side in plastic chairs. Coli's mother looks at her feet. Her family is poor, she says, and she wanted Coli to get an education. It took her several days to reach the shelter because she didn't have $2 for the bus fare.
For more than an hour, Coli cries. Tears run down either side of his cheeks, forming two watery garlands. They meet at his chin and plop down on his collar bone, pooling above his shirt.
She stands up and wipes his chin. They leave, crossing the dusty boulevard.
Her arm reaches around his shoulder and the long sleeve of her robe falls around the little boy. It hides him from the remaining children, who silently watch Coli go home.
_____________________________
EPILOGUE:
Soon after Coli left, his marabout traveled to Guinea-Bissau. He angrily demanded to know why Coli had run away.
Ashamed, Coli's father promised to make up for the boy's bad behavior.
He is sending the marabout two more sons.
Jun 2, 2008
UAS (semoga) terakhir
Jam setengah satu siang nanti, semoga jadi UAS terakhir buat saya di ITB ini.
Time flies, my friends...
Uuww, deg-degaaaaaaan.. Hahaha.
PS. Sebenarnya belum boleh lega dulu, soalnya TA pun masih jauh dari selesai. Hehe.
Time flies, my friends...
Uuww, deg-degaaaaaaan.. Hahaha.
PS. Sebenarnya belum boleh lega dulu, soalnya TA pun masih jauh dari selesai. Hehe.
Apr 21, 2008
Dia
Good people deserve good things.
Great people deserve great lives.
Wish u good things and a great life.
Happy birthday, Ko!
PS. The first time i heard this song, it reminded me of you. And it still.
Great people deserve great lives.
Wish u good things and a great life.
Happy birthday, Ko!
PS. The first time i heard this song, it reminded me of you. And it still.
Apr 17, 2008
value of gossip
Awal mulanya dari seorang ibu-ibu paruh baya berjilbab yang mendekati saya dan Riko yang ketika itu sedang makan nasi goreng di seberang hotel Savoy Homann. Ibu-ibu ini menawarkan beragam tabloid dengan muka agak memelas dan mulut yang tak berhenti mengoceh. Akhirnya, karena tidak tega (dan juga tidak kuat mendengar ocehan tanpa koma) kami beli satu tabloid gosip. Tabloid itu pun dibiarkan tergeletak begitu saja di jok belakang mobil.
Esoknya, baru saya iseng-iseng membaca tabloid tersebut. Judul di cover depannya cukup provokatif (kalau tidak bisa disebut murahan) : GUNA-GUNA ISTRI MUDA.
Yeaah, dengan memasang foto Mayang Sari dan Bambang Tri sebagai penghias.
Mulailah saya membaca.
Dari halaman pertama saja sudah bikin saya kesal. Bukannya karena saya membela Mayang yang sangat disudutkan dalam artikel-artikel ini. Saya tidak pro Mayang, Bambang atau Halimah (haha, kenal juga tidak, ngapain ikut pusing). Tapi karena content dari tulisan itu sendiri buat saya adalah sebuah pembodohan massal.
Redaksi tabloid ini dengan bangga mempersembahkan artikel dengan judul "Sosok Mayangsari di Mata Publik". Yes, bold and capital, let me repeat : PUBLIK.
Sepintas pada artikel 2 halaman itu saya tidak melihat angka survey atau pie chart seperti yang sering ada di KOMPAS. Lalu saya berpikir, mungkinkah tabloid ini mewawancarai seseorang bernama Publik?
Namun setelah saya baca, hanya ada sekitar 5-6 nama yang dikutip dan tak satu pun dari mereka bernama Publik. Juga, tak satu pun dari mereka adalah seorang wakil masyarakat, pemimpin suku, atau siapapun yang punya kapabilitas berbicara atas nama publik.
Lalu ini publik yang mana ya?
Publik Indonesia? Dari 200juta lebih orang di Indonesia sudah berapa ratus atau ribu yang ditanya hingga bisa sampai pada kesimpulan "pendapat publik"?
Baru saja hari Senin kemarin, salah seorang dosen saja mengatakan di kuliahnya : value dari acara gosip itu nol.
Saya bukan anti acara gosip juga. Kadang saya menikmati berita-berita tentang tingkah aku (yang konoon) pesohor kita itu. Sayangnya, sepertinya beberapa orang menganggap gosip-gosip itu menjadi terlalu serius. Dan acara-acara gosip itu pun sekarang tak hanya dikemas sebagai unsur yang fun. Pada beberapa acara, acara gosip tersebut mengusung format yang seriuuuus sekali. Dibawakan dengan nada yang hiperbolis dan berapi-api oleh seorang pembawa acara yang menatap tajam ke arah kamera seolah-olah apa yang dia katakan lebih penting daripada naiknya harga beras.
Supeeeer pembodohan! Kalau begini mungkin value nya sudah bukan nol lagi tapi minus.
Esoknya, baru saya iseng-iseng membaca tabloid tersebut. Judul di cover depannya cukup provokatif (kalau tidak bisa disebut murahan) : GUNA-GUNA ISTRI MUDA.
Yeaah, dengan memasang foto Mayang Sari dan Bambang Tri sebagai penghias.
Mulailah saya membaca.
Dari halaman pertama saja sudah bikin saya kesal. Bukannya karena saya membela Mayang yang sangat disudutkan dalam artikel-artikel ini. Saya tidak pro Mayang, Bambang atau Halimah (haha, kenal juga tidak, ngapain ikut pusing). Tapi karena content dari tulisan itu sendiri buat saya adalah sebuah pembodohan massal.
Redaksi tabloid ini dengan bangga mempersembahkan artikel dengan judul "Sosok Mayangsari di Mata Publik". Yes, bold and capital, let me repeat : PUBLIK.
Sepintas pada artikel 2 halaman itu saya tidak melihat angka survey atau pie chart seperti yang sering ada di KOMPAS. Lalu saya berpikir, mungkinkah tabloid ini mewawancarai seseorang bernama Publik?
Namun setelah saya baca, hanya ada sekitar 5-6 nama yang dikutip dan tak satu pun dari mereka bernama Publik. Juga, tak satu pun dari mereka adalah seorang wakil masyarakat, pemimpin suku, atau siapapun yang punya kapabilitas berbicara atas nama publik.
Lalu ini publik yang mana ya?
Publik Indonesia? Dari 200juta lebih orang di Indonesia sudah berapa ratus atau ribu yang ditanya hingga bisa sampai pada kesimpulan "pendapat publik"?
Baru saja hari Senin kemarin, salah seorang dosen saja mengatakan di kuliahnya : value dari acara gosip itu nol.
Saya bukan anti acara gosip juga. Kadang saya menikmati berita-berita tentang tingkah aku (yang konoon) pesohor kita itu. Sayangnya, sepertinya beberapa orang menganggap gosip-gosip itu menjadi terlalu serius. Dan acara-acara gosip itu pun sekarang tak hanya dikemas sebagai unsur yang fun. Pada beberapa acara, acara gosip tersebut mengusung format yang seriuuuus sekali. Dibawakan dengan nada yang hiperbolis dan berapi-api oleh seorang pembawa acara yang menatap tajam ke arah kamera seolah-olah apa yang dia katakan lebih penting daripada naiknya harga beras.
Supeeeer pembodohan! Kalau begini mungkin value nya sudah bukan nol lagi tapi minus.
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