Another Reunion, Batu Putih!

Last year, 13^th December 2011, we met up on a Christmas and New Year’s Eve Holiday, rewinding some fun memories we ever had before in our most beloved hometown, Sangatta, East Kalimantan.

Yes, that place was a beautiful home for me to come back. The great nature and fresh breeze along with the mining. Despite it’s a coal corporations, I sometimes reflect this company’s existence as a huge trampoline for young great leaders who were born to be bonded with Mother Nature. I knew this would come, someday.

Many great dreams were made in that place, that home. Many great stories had been made there. And many great families had also been made. I made myself there. I was always bonded with the nature, and I knew my life would have something to do with it.

Which was not the main idea of this post.

We had another reunion in 2012, 25^th June 2012. It was such a sunny day in Jakarta, we (me, Joop, Vina, Aga, Bella, and Dhani) decided to meet up in Gandaria City, and it turned out to be quite a nice place to hang out, except for the emptiness we felt since it was a work day.

I wore an Earth-colored clothes, mostly brown. Brown nude shirt, short, shoes, and brown leather bag. Brown glasses as well.

A nice lunch—first session meal—at Iga Iga, and I just watched. Yep, I was fasting that day. We sat there for around two hours or more, just chatted about simple stuff like school, college, but mostly horror movies. Had several snapshots as well. At least I looked quite nice.

Then it was 4 o’clock, and we moved to have a second session. The mothers went around the mall since they didn’t want to join any food-related session. We had our second session in Nanny’s Pavilion. Turned out to be quite a nice place. Shabrina ordered Chocolate Waffles and she didn’t finish it, yet I was still fasting. Everybody had a good time.

And it came to a goodbye. And a promise for another reunion, perhaps with larger mass of people. Adios, and be well!

Photo credit to Joop.

The Adventure of Dancing Men and Other Sherlock Holmes Stories

I bought this book over a year ago yet I never finished it, despite it’s so light and thin and it gives that “You can finish this book even less than an hour” impression, I still didn’t have that willingness to finish the book since the first I found out that (at that time), the English terms Sir Arthur Conan Doyle used in his book is quite heavy. I was a pretty normal English reader back then, and so am I nowadays. But, when I overlooked it again, I came to a conclusion which that hard English terms impression I got was simply a one-sided judgment, since the more I got into the short stories, the more I got excited with the plot.

Let me give a brief preview. Mr. Doyle had written these series quite long ago (before I was born) and surely, he lived in such a different era with mine. However, thanks to those hard terms he used in the stories, it actually gave those “I’m in this old era of England” feelings that you (particularly myself) shimmer when he tried to describe the story of the magnificent Sherlock Holmes and his friend, Dr. Watson.

This book revolves around Sir Sherlock Holmes cases, which are popular back in the era of this series. Surely some people know about The Adventure of the Dancing Men, The Musgrave Ritual, etc. I have known ‘The Adventure of the Dancing Men’ from a manga called “Detective Conan”, thus it wasn’t that unfamiliar.

But a story that quite attached my attention on it is The Adventure of the Dying Detective, on how this marvelous gentleman has nailed his job to seek the truth with a tactical, sophisticated way that even expertise can be fooled. Although all of the stories are fast-read and for some people (particularly myself) who might be more interested to a more detailed book, this book has successfully given the first good impression for those who want to (finally) follow the stories of Sherlock Holmes.

Like the synopsis has stated, “In this inexpensive collection, these stories represent a wonderful introduction to the larger body of Holmes stories, as well as a delightful pocket-size treat for any mystery lover,” I get to agree with that. It did give me another reason to buy a complete series of Sherlock Holmes, and even though it is not a “pocket-size treat”, it’s more like a light and brief treat for mystery lover who needs a getaway from all of the heavy books.

Additional, even if the book doesn’t have that quality of paper that I always prioritize while buying a book, but the papers were thick and textural enough to make me bought it anyway. And the font was tolerable and has the perfect size that matches my sight.

Thus, it is wise for me to recommend this book, for those who want to have a good preview of Sherlock Holmes’ serial, or those who simply want to read another light-reading but fascinating book.

d.

Sentiment Issue

Most people think I already have my ideal condition of physical appearances. I am proud of my own body, that is true. Though I think it’s pretty common for a normal human to feel unsatisfied with their own physical appearances. In this case, I’d use those unsatisfied feelings as a motivation. Yes, I’m bragging about this on my blog. 

You see, for most Indonesian people, having more than 1.6 meter height has been considered as tall enough. But, another fact came up, the percentage of petite women using wedges and high heels —any related kind of shoes I never be able to stand against— and how those killer and seems to be pretty yet horrified me terribly shoes have gained height up until 20cm has scared me so much. 

I never like using high heels. And the only type I know is wedges and high heels, yet both of them are HIGH heels. Yes, the image of me wearing them always horrified me, and they’re such a pain. My family history never has good relation with those type of shoes, as my Mum never takes the liking on them. Thus, it’s pretty normal if I wished to wear normal shoes (not that I was trying to imply that high heels is abnormal). 

But another problem raised up. The fact that people around me started to get taller —thanks to the killer shoes— yet I’m stuck in my height, miserably trying to get a look when I’m in the middle of a concert —yet everyone was THAT tall, and somehow, I looked like I am indeed petite. 

Height has always been my sentiment issue. Most. Top of the list, even before my thigh. 

And then I googled some clothing website, and they categorized women into two groups: PETITE (5’4” and Under) and TALL (5’10” and Up). I googled an online feet to meter converter and guess what, I was included in PETITE group. 

Nice, dude, seriously. Whoever made that website, I’ll prove it to you. At least I might get into NORMAL size. I still have several years to raise some inches. I’LL GAIN MY HEIGHT SO I WON’T USE HIGH HEELS! 

ps. the fact that I actually wrote this down on blog is indeed crazy. And random.

Phrase of A Day #3

"Sometimes falling in love is important. So that you’ll be able to describe every crumbles of feelings you get every second when you’re on hold of yourself. You’ll be able to give such exaggerated emphasizes to such a simple poem. You’ll be able to let your soul reconciles with the feelings. And gives reciprocity. It’s as simple as a need to add essence in a long-written history. As simple as falling in love."

-DPS

Phrase of A Day #2

"Until the last snow leopard fall down, until the last iceberg being melted away, until the last rhinoceros getting extinct, and until the last tree being cut down, I will still be the first one to stand up, fight back. And even after those."

Phrase of A Day #1

"Brace yourself. So you’ll be longing to be braced emotionally by someone better. To be deeply healed by someone. To get embraced by. Or not."

-Quiet night, after a late bath.

Supernova: Kesatria, Putri, dan Bintang Jatuh

I forgot how many books I've read until now.

The day after tomorrow is my sophomore final exam, yet I spent 3 hours straight reading this book. Okay, move on to my review (it's better to do some reviews when it's still fresh in your mind).

For the record, I actually have bought this book so long before I finally decided to grab myself together and tried to look again through her pages -Supernova. First time I bought her, I spent nearly one hour to read several chapters, let's just say five until nine. Guess what, I was bored.

No, no, the book was fine, She was fine. I had no problem with the book, but somehow with the author's way in telling events. She used many Physics terms -I guess so- that no common people would simply understand them. Bifurcation, serotonin, I don't even know how to spell. No, no, I know serotonin, but her terms for many universal events and atomic incidents are just... not helping me much.

Thus, I decided to pause the book. It's rare, yes. Even the most uninteresting fantasy story I've read so far took at least 2 hours of my life to finish it, without stoping.

I thought it was just my brain just couldn't process those words really good, I need to take a break. Hiatus.

Then suddenly, out of nowhere, I decided to continue it again. I always have a thing for any philosophical ideas, scientific explanation for human's emotions, life experiences. And I knew I found them in this book, though it was really hard to digest previously, I had quite great time spending three hours of my sleep to finish the book. Can't believe myself either.

Anyway, overall, the book spent her 400-ish pages to elucidate about a gay couple who decided to make a novel based on scientific-something. Along the story, the author included several points from the gay couple who wrote a story, and the actors in their story. It was like reading a book in a book. Inception.



It was so hard in the beginning, but gradually, I started to understand and enjoy it. How I always looking for books that explicitly blurt out philosophical ideas and paradoxes. It's fun playing with paradoxes, and I kind of seeing it from this book. Many scientific terms are being introduced through this book -I wonder how the author studied all of those herself just to make one fine hard novel?

This book actually as simple as the idea of questioning. The idea I found tangling all of the events is actually about human tried to question themselves, how every single particle we live in is actually a question mark, and how we are actually living by keep answering them. As simple as that. As mystical as that.

Well, still got exams. Go read by yourself!

Doodles.

Ask: Wonder Why We Are So Bonded To Water...

My Little Sister, Both of us are bonded with swimming

Behind a petite beach

Waves

Sneak A Moment: 5 minutes Photobox

Ambush in Thursday Morning: Aerobics

An End of Sophomore Year

My sophomore year wasn’t that great.

Not as great as those people said sophomore would be.

The busyness, blizzards and works, quarrels. I’ve had them all.

Yet it was simply fine. It ended fine, nice, better than what I’ve expected.

It ended great.

Though the route was so hard and tricky, at least we ended having laughs together.