The Sickies

Tuhan pasti punya alasan, mendekatkan keluarga kami dengan rumah sakit. Seingatku, sejak aku masih kecil, seluruh keluarga pernah dirawat inap di rumah sakit. Bahkan ketika aku lahir, kedua kakakku juga sedang dirawat di rumah sakit. Ibu, sedang melahirkan aku. Bapak menunggui kami semua. Ya, jadinya semua pindah tidur ke rumah sakit. Bapak pernah hampir pasrah jika harus kehilangan Ibu, ketika Ibu dirawat sampai berbulan-bulan. Dua adikku pernah balapan melewati masa kritis karena malaria. Kami anak-anak perempuan, semua pernah dioperasi.

God must have a reason to put our family close to hospital. As I recall, since I was little, every one in my family has been treated in hospital. Even when I was born, my sisters were both in hospital. So was my mom, giving me birth. And my dad, taking care of us all. It was like our family moved to the hospital. My Dad once like giving up to lose my mom when she had to stay for months. Both my younger brother once together racing with critical time cause of malaria. We, the girls, all had surgery.

Karena saking seringnya anggota keluarga kami masuk rumah sakit, hal itu seperti menjadi hal yang biasa, walau kami tidak menyukainya. Tidak ada kepanikan. Tahu apa yang harus disiapkan. Siap dengan segala kemungkinan -- termasuk cari hutangan untuk biaya perawatan...

Because it was to often happened, being in hospital was like a normal thing, tho we never liked it. No panic. Knew what to do. Ready for every possibility -- including to owe money to pay the hospital.

Pun ketika Ibit harus dirawat, Dan awalnya panik. Tapi melihat aku tenang, dia pun ikut tenang. Ketika aku harus opname pun, Dan akhirnya tahu apa yang harus dilakukan tanpa jadi panik. Aku bahkan pernah datang sendiri ke rumah sakit, membiarkan diri diharuskan rawat inap. Baru setelah infus terpasang dan aku agak tenang, aku menghubungi Dan untuk datang membawa perlengkapan sehari-hari.

Like when Ibit needed to stay at hospital, Dan was panic at the beginning. But seeing me calm has made him calm too. When one day it was me who needed to stay at hospital, Dan knew exactly what to do and prepare. Once I brought my self to hospital and let the nurses put the infusion on me, then I called Dan to come and bring me things I needed.

Aku bercerita seperti ini bukan ingin bilang dirawat di rumah sakit itu gampang dan enak. Sama sekali ngga gampang, termasuk soal biaya. Dan sama sekali ngga enak. Sakit itu sudah ngga enak. Dirawat di rumah sakit lebih ngga enak. Kebosanan adalah penderitaan kedua setelah rasa sakit itu sendiri. Makanya jangan sakit, jaga kesehatan. Kesehatan adalah kekayaan yang tak terkira *yayaya... aku juga sedang mengingatkan diriku sendiri*

I'm telling this, not to say that being in hospital is easy and enjoyable. It is not easy at all, especially when it comes to cost. And not comfortable at all. Being sick is bad enough, even without staying. Get bored is the second misery after the illness. That's why, don't be sick. Take care of our health. Health is one of the biggest treasure... *yes I am reminding my self...*

***

Pagi ini aku membesuk anak seorang teman. Bayi enam bulan. Ada sesuatu di paru-parunya. Di tangannya dipasang infus. Di duburnya dipasang kateter. Mukanya pucat. Tubuhnya lemah. Matanya redup, lelah habis menangis. Masih ada sisa air mata mengering di ujung matanya. Kusentuh diam saja. Kuelus cuma berkedip. Kuajak bicara tidak bersuara.

This morning I was visiting a friend's daughter. A six months old baby. There was some thing in her lungs. She had infusion on his hand, and catheter in her anus. Her face was pale. Her body was weak. Her eyes were dim, tired of crying. I could still a dried tear left in the corner of her eyes. I touched her and she stayed still. I rubbed her and she just blinked. I talked to her but she gives no sound.

Sumpah. Melihat dia menderita itu juga penderitaan. Kita yang tua bisa bilang mana yang sakit. Bisa mengerti kalau harus nahan sakit ketika disuntik atau dipasang infus. Paham dan sabar jika memang harus terbaring lama untuk bisa sembuh. Tapi bayi bisa apa?

I swear. Watching her suffering was a suffer. We, grown ups, can tell which one hurts. We can understand to bear the pain when we need injections. We understand to be patient that we need to lay in bed for a while to get rid of. But what babies can do?,

Aku yakin, seandainya bisa, ibunya pasti mau mengambil alih semua rasa sakit yang dialami bayinya. Karena aku merasa begitu.

I believe if only she could, her mother would take over all the pain from her baby. Coz that's what I'm feeling

Kirim doa, kirimkan doa. Untuk semua bayi sakit di dunia. Semoga lekas sembuh. Dan berikan kesabaran kepada semua ibu mereka. Karena menunggui bayi sakit adalah lelah lahir batin...

Send your prayers, send our prayers. To all sick babies in the world. Get well. And give tons of patience to their mothers. Because taking care of sick babies is mentally and physically tiring...

the (not) conjoined twins

I can't tell how grateful I am to have these miracles in my life
aku tidak bisa mengatakan betapa bersyukurnya aku memiliki dua keajaiban ini dalam hidupku

when I was having my pregnancy of Ar and Ir, I didn't have USG until week 16. I felt my tummy was too big for the age of the pregnancy. I was worried if there was something wrong, so I checked out. I move from midwife to doctor.
waktu hamil Ar Ir, aku belum USG sampai umur kehamilan 16 minggu. aku merasa perutku gede banget, untuk umur segitu. aku khawatir ada apa apa. makanya aku periksa. aku pindah dari bidan ke dokter.

I still remember the first thing the doctor said.
'they have separated bag, that is good. so we know they are not conjoined'
aku masih ingat hal pertama yang dikatakan dokter
'kantongnya terpisah, jadi kita bisa yakin mereka bukan kembar siam' 

so that's why it was bigger than my pregnancy of Ibit, at the same age. I was shocked. I wasn't ready. it took time for me to take the reality that I was having twin babies...
jadi itu sebabnya perutku lebih besar dari ketika hamil Ibit pada usia kehamilan yang sama. aku shock. butuh waktu untuk bisa menerima kenyataan, bahwa aku hamil bayi kembar...

***

this afternoon I went to Karyadi Hospital to see a set of conjoined twin - Sanaya and Isnaya. their parents are not my family. not my friend. I don't even know them. I just know them from the newspaper. but the news about them have pulled my sympathy. they are not rich family who can easily afford a surgery to separate the twin. 
siang ini aku ke Rumah Sakit Karyadi menjenguk sepasang bayi kembar siam, Sanaya dan Isnaya. orang tuanya bukan saudaraku. bukan temanku. kenal juga enggak. cuma tahu tentang mereka dari koran. tapi berita tentang mereka bikin aku trenyuh. mereka bukan keluarga mampu yang bisa dengan mudah membiayai operasi pemisahan bayi mereka.


the time I entered the gate my heart was beating faster. when I entered the building my eyes started watering. when I entered the room I found my self hard to breathe. but when I saw them I was so glad. the look beautiful and all right.
waktu masuk gerbang rumah sakit aku berdebar kencang. waktu masuk gedung matau mulai panas mau nangis. waktu masuk ruangan rasanya sesak napas. tapi ketika aku melihat mereka rasanya lega. mereka cantik dan baik-baik saja.

I wanted to hold and carry them but don't know how. so I just saw their mother change their diapers and carry them gently. I wanted to take a picture but it is not allowed. I had to see the PR to get a permission. but I don't think it is important. the most important thing is I know they are healthy and will be ready for surgery in a few months --- and live a normal life.
pengen nggendong, tapi bingung bagaimana caranya. jadi aku lihatin saja ibu mereka mengganti popok dan menggendong. pengen moto tapi dilarang. boleh sih, tapi harus minta ijin bagian humas. ribet. ga penting. yang penting aku tahu bahwa mereka sehat dan akan siap untuk dioperasi dalam beberapa bulan --- lalu menjalani hidup dengan normal.










Hosted by Cecily and Lolli


(I grabbed the picture of Sanaya and Isnaya from this web)

Pray for Indonesia

pray for victims of tsunami in Mentawai
pray for the victims of Mount Merapi's eruptions

I am so speechless.
this makes me cry.
I wish there's some thing I can do more than just to share a little amount of money I have. 

do you think it is okay if I go being a volunteer and leave my children with the nanny at home? 

17-s games

this post is submitted for 'post together' about independence in order to celebrate our 64th anniversary of independence day among Loenpia Community
postingan ini diikutkan dalam postingan serempak tentang kemerdekaan dalam rangka memperingati 64 tahun kemerdekaan Indonesia di komunitas Loenpia

this post is also submitted for Tuesday Toot. this week's toot is for Indonesia for celebrating it's 64th Independence day, and for the children in my neighborhood for having a great time in the games.
postingan ini juga diikutkan di Tuesday Toot. toot minggu ini adalah untuk Indonesia yang merayakan hari ulang tahun kemerdekaan ke-64, dan untuk anak-anak di RTku yang sudah bergembira mengikuti semua lomba

Lomba 17-an

the most exciting thing for the children about 17 August, more than it is as Indonesia Independence Day, is the games. off course. I found it hard to be able to feel deeply the meaning of independence, since I have breathe the freedom since my first breath. how can I expect them to?

hal paling menyenangkan buat anak-anak tentang 17 Agustus, melebihi maknanya sebagai Hari Kemerdekaan Indonesia, adalah lomba-lombanya. tentu saja. aku sendiri masih merasa sulit untuk benar-benar bisa memaknai kemerdekaan, karena nafas pertamaku pun kuhirup dalam kemerdekaan. bagaimana aku mau menuntut mereka bisa begitu?

so I'll just always be grateful that I didn't experience the colonization by Dutch and Japan hundred years ago. I'll just always be thankful for the freedom we are having. and I will pray for any other country in the world that hasn't been in, to soon reach their independence.

jadi aku akan selalu bersyukur bahwa aku tidak mengalaqmi masa penjajahan ratusan tahun yang lalu. aku akan selalu bersyukur untuk kemerdekaan yang sekarang kita nikmati. dan aku berdoa untuk semua bangsa di dunia yang belum merdeka, untuk dapat segera meraih kemerdekaannya.


and I am grateful to be able to see these children live happily, being a part of the freedom.
dan aku bersyukur anak-anak ini hidup bahagia, menjadi bagian dari kemerdekaan

these are some fun I captured during the kids games in my neighborhood yesterday
ini ada beberapa kegembiraan yang bisa kutangkap selama lombapermainan anak-anak di RTku

eating donuts
makan donat

picking coins on a cream-covered cucumber
ambil koin di timun berkrim

oh Ar, you looks so sweet I want to lick!
oh Ar, kamu kelihatan manis banget, sampai pengen jilat nih!

moving balls from basket to (far) other basket
memindah bola dari keranjang ke keranjang lain (yang jauh)

blow plastic filled with flour
memecah plastik berisi tepung

the longest tounge contest
kontes lidah terpanjang


it didn't matter who won. every one had fun. that's all
ga penting siapa yang menang. semua senang. itu saja


HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY, INDONESIA!

How bad does internet annoy you?

I cheated this time. Neither of these photo below is mine. They were all taken from the web by googling. You can easily find it with the keyword Prita Mulyasari and Manohara Pinot. Both pictures are courtesy of them.

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

There are two big issues here in Indonesia lately. One is related to internet activities. What annoy me is the story following the internet activity. The other one has nothing to do with internet. But it lately related to my internet activities, and annoy me in a different way.
Ada dua berita heboh di Indonesia baru-baru ini. Yang satu berhubungan langsung dengan aktivitas internet. Yang membuatku kesal adalah cerita yang mengikuti aktivitas internet itu. Satunya lagi sama sekali tidak berhubungan dengan internet. Tapi itu tiba-tiba menyangkut aktivitas internetku, dan aku terganggu, meskipun bentuknya beda dengan yang pertama.

First, is something similar to what Diane told on her blog few days ago. Prita Mulyasari, a mother of two toddlers has been arrested, and accused of defamation about OMNI Hospital.
Pertama, mirip dengan kasus yang diceritakan Diane di blognya beberapa waktu lalu. Prita Mulyasari, ibu dari dua balita telah ditangkap, dan dituduh mencemarkan nama baik OMNI Hospital.

What she did was writing emails to her friends, complaining about how the hospital has done something she thought wasn’t right. She asked for explanation but the hospital did her ping pong.
Yang dia lakukan adalah menulis email ke teman-temannya, yang berisi keluhan atas tindakan rumah sakit yang dia rasa salah. Dia telah meminta penjelasan kepada pihak rumah sakit, tapi dia malah dibikin pingpong.

The mail has spread out and the hospital found it. Then they sue Prita, and Prita got arrested and put in jail on May 13th. Many people in Indonesia joined the cause ‘Free Prita Mulyasari’ on facebook and blogs, and do support in many ways. Alhamdulillah yesterday they let her out of jail and back to her babies, but she still need to attend the criminal case trial in court.
Email itu menyebar dan akhirnya sampai juga ke pihak rumah sakit. OMNI Hospital akhirnya menuntut Prita, dan dia dipenjara pada tanggal 13 Mei lalu. Masyarakat Indonesia menyatakan dukungan pembebasan Prita, dan bergabung di cause ‘bebaskan Prita’ di facebook dan blog. Alhamdulillah kemarin dia dikeluarkan dari penjara dan bertemu dua buah hatinya, tapi masih harus menghadapi persidangan atas dirinya.

I sure hope she will win the case, and OMNI Hospital pay for what they did to Prita.This really annoyed me. How could an email of complaining bring you to jail? Why Prita were accused telling a lie, while she was trying to find a truth? pray for her...
Aku berharap dia menang, dan pihak OMNI membayar atas apa yang telah dilakukannya terhadap Prita. Ini bener-bener ngeselin. Kok bisa email keluhan membawamu ke penjara? Kok Prita dituduh menyebar berita bohong, sedang dia justru berusaha mendapatkan kebenaran? Doakan dia ya...

Second, is about an Indonesian Model named Manohara Odelia Pinot, who got married with a Prince from Kelantan, Malaysia. Being his wife didn’t make Manohara a Princess. She has been abused. She lived in a secret room, like being put in a cage and so on and so on. She wasn’t allowed to receive calls from her mother and family.
Yang kedua adalah tentang model Indonesia Manohara Odelia Pinot, yang menikah dengan pangeran dari kerajaan Kelantan, Malaysia. Menjadi istri pangeran tidak menjadikannya putrid kerajaan. Dia mengalami kekerasan. Tinggal di kamar rahasia, seperti ditaruh di penjara, dan seterusnya dan seterusnya. Tidak boleh menerima teleon dari Ibu dan keluarganya.

One lucky day, when she and her husband were in Singapore, she did an escape and made it to meet her mother and went home to Indonesia. I don’t pay much attention to this case lately, but I heard Prince Fahry agree to let Manohara free.
Suatu hari yang beruntung waktu sedang berkunjung ke Singapura bersama keluarga istana, dia berhasil melarikan diri, bertemu ibunya, lalu pulang ke Indonesia. Aku tidak begitu mengikuti kelanjutan ceritanya, tapi kudengar Pangeran Fahry akhirnya ikhlas melepas Manohara.

And why does this annoy me? Because my name is Latree Manohara. Suddenly I received sooooooo many friend requests from men I never knew. And yes, all are men. I know this may sounds silly. But this really annoys me also, in other way.
Jadi apa hubungannya dangan aku? Karena namaku Latree Manohara. TIba-tiba aku menerima permintaan pertemanan bertubi-tubi dari banyaaaaaaak laki-laki yang tidak kukenal. Yup, semuanya laki-laki. Aku tahu mungkin ini kedengarannya konyol, tapi ini benar-benar menggangguku.

See, in Indonesia, there is no family name. Even if you get married, doesn’t mean you have to change your name to your husband’s. Yes people call me Mrs. Dan. But in every card I have, and for any purpose, I still use the name my parents gave me. And children have their own name, without family name either. I’m thinking about changing my name on Facebook with my husband’s name, but Dan said it is not necessary. All I need to do is just ignore all those friend requests I don’t want to accept. I guess he’s right.
Memang, di Indonesia tidak ada nama keluarga. Meskipun kau menikah, tidak berarti kau harus mengubah namamu menjadi nama suamimu. Iya sih, orang orang memanggilku Bu Dan. Tapi di semua kartu, dan untuk semua tujuan, aku tetap pakai nama yang diberikan orang tuaku. Juga anak-anak,, mereka punya nama mereka sendiri-sendiri, tanpa nama keluarga. Aku berniat mengganti namaku di Facebook dengan nama suamiku. Tapi kata Dan itu tidak perlu. Aku hanya tinggal cuekin aja semua request itu. Kupikir bener juga.

So, did you ever had experience, how internet annoy you?
Jadi, pernahkah inernet membuatmu kesal?

sharing smile with Loenpia.net

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

aku merasa sangat beruntung punya orang tua. anugrah. dan aku bahagia mereka berdua masih hidup dan sehat.
I’ve been so lucky to have parents. Blessed. And I’m happy they both are still alive, and healthy.

pun anak-anakku. kuharap itu pula yang mereka rasakan tentang aku dan Dan.
I hope that's also how my children feel about me and Dan.

aku membayangkan bagaimana rasanya tidak punya orang tua, jika kita masih anak-anak. kita pasti butuh tempat bernaung, tempat bergantung, yang akan melindungi dan menjaga kita. orang-orang yang terikat secara emosional maupun biologis.
I wonder how it fells not to have parents, while we are still children. We would need ones to hold on, to lean on, to protect us, to keep us secure. Ones emotionally tied, as well as biologically.

hari ini, aku bersama Loenpia.net, komunitas blogger Semarang, mengunjungi yatim piatu di panti asuhan Fatimatuzzahra. ini adalah salah satu bentuk aksi Loenpia peduli.
Today I joined Loenpia.net, Semarang blogger community, visited parentless children in a charitable institution, Fatimatuzzahra. This is one of Loenpia charity act, bloggers care.

aku mengajak anak-anak, agar mereka tahu ada orang-orang yang kurang beruntung, agar mereka lebh bisa berempathy. aku menjelaskan bagaimana keadaan anak-anak yang tak punya orang tua ini.
I took my children with us, to show them that some people are not as lucky as they are, and learn to have more empathy. I told them what parentless children are, and how they have to live harder life in the institution.

Ar: ke mana orang tua mereka?
Ar: “Where are their parents?”

aku: meninggal
Me: “Died”

Ar: mereka tinggal sama siapa?
Ar: “Who do they live with?”

aku: orang tua angkat mereka di sana
Me: “Their foster parents there”

Ir: aku jadi sedih
Ir: “This makes me sad”

Ibit: boleh aku berikan beberapa bukuku pada mereka?
Ibit: “May I give some of my books to them?”

aku tahu anak-anak ini butuh lebih dari sekedar baju bekas pantas pakai dan buku-buku. mungkin hal yang paling mereka rindukan di dunia, adalah kasih sayang orang tua. tapi setidaknya, apa yang kami lakukan adalah juga berbagi kasih sayang dengan mereka. semoga bisa membuat hari mereka sedikit lebh berbahagia.
I know they need more than just some used clothes and books. May be love and comfort from parents is the thing they miss most. But at least, this way we can share love and caress to them. Hopefully what we did to day could bring them a little happiness.

mudah-mudahan aku masih bisa mengikuti lagi kegiatan-kegiatan Loenpia.net di waktu yang akan datang. dan mengajak lebih banyak lagi orang di sekitar kita, tersenyum
I hope I can still join Loenpia.net in more activities in the future. and make more people around us, smile.

MERDEKA!!!

FREEDOM!!!

Indonesia's Independence Day is on 17 August, which is tomorrow. We have started the celebrations from few days ago.
these are some pictures from our independence day celebration in my neighborhood. not the best shots, everybody was moving and my cam isn't good enough for that...

games for children

we have done this last Saturday


eating kerupuk is the most frustating game



Ir was frustated



but Ar broke the rules


and Ansel didn't care about it at all, just enjoyed the kerupuk


Ibit won this race


Ar was so good in this one





the night before the day


Ar Ir and Ibit helped me wrap the gifts for the children in the afternoon


we prayed for our heroes who has fought with their blood to free this country from Dutch and Japan



games for dads: they had to move 5 marbles in a plate filled with flour to a little bowl, using their mouth



games for moms: they have to put a pencil tied behind their back into a bottle




every kid got a gift






and hot soto was great for a cold night dinner


more reports next week!!

arisan ibu-ibu dan gado-gado

arisan is a group of some person, with an activity of gathering some amount of money periodically. in each period they will draw a name (or more) to get the collected money. the periods should go on until everybody gets the same amount of money.



the housewives arisan group monthly meeting in my neighborhood was held in my house this evening. it should start at 16.00, and I started preparing at 14.00. imagine, it was such a rush hour. alhamdulillah I got these helpers with me. what should I do without them?
arisan ibu-ibu bulan ini di rumahku. acara dimulai jam 16.00, dan jam 14.00 aku baru siap-siap. bayangkan, rush hour. alhamdulillah ada sukarelawan ini. apa jadinya aku tanpa bantuan mereka?



i served hot tea for the drink and some snacks such as brownies, fried banana, and tahu bakso.
(tahu bakso is tofu filled with minced beef)
here is the main course, gado-gado. want to try to make it? it's easy (remember, I only do simple cooking).

aku suguhkan teh panas dan snack (brownies, pisang goreng dan tahu bakso)
makan besarnya gado-gado. mau coba? gampang kok bikinnya (aku ga mungkin masak yang susah)




this is what you do (my version), for 5 persons:
200 grams carrot and 200 grams of bean: cut and steam
some lettuce, 2 tomatoes, 1 cucumber: just wash and slice
500 grams of potatoes: steam, peel off, and cut
5 tahu and 5 tempe: cut, soak it in disolved garlic and salt (100 cc water, 3 garlic and 1 tea spoon salt) for about 10 minutes, and fry
5 eggs: boil
emping (fried chips made of Gnetum gnemon fruit) and kerupuk udang (shrimp chip?)

sauce:
200 grams of sambel pecel, boil with 300 cc of thin coconut milk

arange all ingredients in a plate (except emping and krupuk), pour some sauce, and put emping and kerupuk on top

begini cara bikinnya (versi aku, ga enak dilarang protes), untuk 5 orang:
2oo gram wortel dan 200 gram buncis, potong dan kukus.
daun selada, tomat dan timun: cuci dan iris-iris
500 gram kentang: kukus, kupas, potong-potong
5 tahu dan 5 tempe: potong-potong, rendam dalam larutan bumbu (100 cc air, 3 bawang putih yang dihaluskan, 1 sdt garam) kurang lebih 10 menit, lalu goreng
5 butir telur: rebus
emping dan kerupuk udang

saus:
200 gram sambel pecel, rebus dengan 300 cc santan encer.

susun semua bahan di piring (kecuali kerupuk dan emping), siram dengan saus, taburkan kerupuk dan emping di atasnya.


you might want to try other recipe of gado-gado
ini kalo mau nyoba resep gado-gado yang beda

underestimate

reading someone's blog remind me of this

suatu hari aku masuk toko sport, cari baju senam. tokonya lumayan besar dan komplit. kalau masuk toko, aku lebih suka dibiarkan melihat-lihat dan memilih sendiri. baru kalau perlu bantuan aku akan minta tolong pramuniaganya.
one day I went to a sport shop. it was quite big and complete. I usually prefer to be let alone to be able to see around and choose what I like. and I'll call the clerk when I need some help.

di toko ini, mungkin memang standarnya pelanggan harus dilayani sebaik-baiknya, yaitu dengan mendampingi si pelanggan saat sedang melihat-lihat atau memilih barang. jadi begitulah, seorang pramuniaga mendampingiku.
in this shop, may be, the standard is to give the best service to costumers, which means to accompany them when seeing around. so that was how it went. a clerk accompanied me.

'cari apa mbak?'
'what are you looking for, miss?'

'baju senam'
'ftiness suit'

tidak kuduga bantuan yang diberikannya.
'yang murah di sebelah sana', katanya sambil menunjuk ke deretan baju murah.
the help she gave was inscrutable.
'you can find the cheap ones over there', and she pointed to the cheap area.

bukannya aku tidak suka harga murah. aku akan cari yang diskon habis-habisan kalau perlu. tapi kata-kata si mbak ini menunjukkan dia underestimate pada pelanggan. menurutku itu tidak sopan. ingat julia roberts di 'pretty woman?'. dia ditolak belanja di suatu butik karena masih pakai kostum 'kerja'nya. padahal dia bawa kartu kredit tanpa limit punya richard gere...
it's not that I don't like cheap prices. I'd look for big sale if I need to. but what this girl said showed how she underestimated a customer. I think it's rude. remember julia roberts in 'pretty woman'? she was rejected in one boutique because she was still wearing her 'working' costume, whereas she was holding richards gere's unlimited credit card...

jadi aku berkata, 'saya cari yang bagus dan saya suka. bukan yang murah. dan saya rasa saya ngga perlu cari di sini', lalu aku pergi.
so I said, 'I'm looking for something good, that I like. not something cheap. and I don't think I will look for it here', and I left.

#99

WOW!
I'm about to go 100. I just looked back to my archives and found out that there is one old post is still remain a draft. It's from so long ago but I have published it just now. Some thing about circus girls.

A girl bus singing beggar

Yesterday in a bus, on my way home.

Kemaren di bus, dalam perjalanan pulang.
I wouldn’t care if only it was a boy or man. I mean I would; I would put a coin or two in their hand -- unless they sang awful, I wouldn’t pay attention or money....

Aku ngga akan peduli kalau saja itu laki-laki. Makusuku ya aku peduli; aku akan kasih sekeping dua keping -- kecuali nyanyinya bener-bener payah, aku ngga akan kasih perhatian ataupun uang...

But it’s a girl, and I can’t help myself not to pay more attention. I don’t really like the song, but she sang quite well. She was so strong she could hold the guitar without a hanger. I wouldn’t be able to strum if so.

Tapi ini perempuan, dan aku ngga bisa menahan diri untuk tidak memberi perhatian lebih. Aku ngga begitu suka lagunya, tapi suaranya lumayan. Dan menurutku dia kuat banget, pegang gitarnya tanpa gantungan. Kalau aku, aku ngga akan bisa genjreng.
Everybody has to struggle for their life, but some has to struggle harder than the others. She is one of those. And I sympathize to girls who choose to be a singing beggar.

Setiap orang harus berjuang untuk hidupnya, hanya saja sebagian harus berjuang lebih keras, Dia salah satunya. Dan aku bersimpati pada gadis-gadis yang mau jadi pengamen.
Unemployment has become a big issue in this province in the last few years. Many factories have to fire their workers because they loss more and more each day.

Pengangguran sudah jadi masalah besar di provinsi ini beberapa tahun terakhir. Banyak pabrik terpaksa memPHK karyawannya karena terus menerus merugi.
It needs tons of courage to stand there in a bus and sing. Not only because you have to stand in a shaking running bus, strumming guitar and sing. But you have to compete and deal with the boy ones.

Butuh kekuatan besar untuk jadi pengamen di bis bagi seorang gadis. Bukan cuma karena harus berdiri di bus yang ngebut dan berayun, memegang gitar dan bernyanyi. Tapi juga harus bersaing dengan pengamen-pengamen laki-laki.
Competition in street lives is sure so hard...

Persaingan hidup di jalan pasti sangat keras....

Water World

The rain has turned the dry-sensation into this....

Flood in Solo...

and 90% of Bojonegoro

and Kudus...

and all areas along Bengawan Solo River...

The Government has decided to open the Dam periodicly since it can no longer bear the water volume from the rivers flows into it. The sediment has raised up to 100 million m3 of 120 million m3 dam's capacity.

People in the lower course protest this policy, because it means they have to live in flood longer. But if it is not done, a bigger disaster might happen.

The dam might be broken down and let the water flow down uncontrolled.

.....

What happened to mother nature?

DRY SENSATION

Wonogiri was known as a dry land. Full of calcic mountain and lack of water. Alhamdulillah my home wasn’t that bad. I never experienced that kinda lack of water, that I should walk kilometers away to get water and carry it pail by pail. The worst thing was we couldn’t use water as freely as before.
But this dry problem wasn’t only the problem of my home town. I went to some places and saw the same thing. Rice fields that usually green and goldy yellow at rain season, were all turned into brown view.

MY DAM
I went to Waduk Gajahmungkur (Gajahmungkur Dam) on third of Syawal. It’s a tourism object in our town. I’m so proud of it. Over 100 villages in over 10 districts were drawn during the project building it. Offcourse the people who lived there have already been moved to some other places. It’s a large manmade lake. It (was designed to) irrigate thousand hectares of rice fields, and generate some electricity supply for the town. I went there so often.

The dam was so large, it has many beautiful parts and I love them all. It has a camping ground near by. It has a port for fishermen and tourist. It has a park that called ‘plaza’.
When I was in kindergarten, my father had this hobby, fishing. He took me fishing on it edges. At the port, under the bridge, near the river. One day I’ll never forget, our family took a picnic to its plaza. We went there riding 2 old vespas, bring some food – rice, satay, fruits, drinks. We were not a rich family, a simple picnic like that was a great thing to remember for a kid like me.
When I was in high school, I often went there alone or with a friend riding motorbike. We did nothing, just sit there under any tree, and enjoy the view, the wind, and the coolness.
Even when I finally lived away from my hometown, I still always tried to visit it when ever I went home.
Like this Iedul Fitri. I and my sisters and brother, and all my nieces and nephews, went there to have some fun. Well, we had it. Only it was so sad to see what the dam has become to be. The water level decreased to an unimaginable level.
See the port over the people?
Now boats started to go from about 4 meters below it







This is a view of a part of the dam's edge, close to the intake. The water level got lower and lower, met the bad sedimentation that's up to 3.000.000 m3 provided this (it's reported to be 130,5 meters height). This boat was used to go to that island over there. Now you can go there by car.
In a normal water level, I would have met nila and karper fish.



Where will we go? Uncle Ibot, push the boat to water please...








I'm glad I could still find a green part of this sad thing.....
People who live around the dam plant corn on the sediment as the substitute of fish... It's exotic, really.
Perum Jasa Tirta is right now dredging the sediment. They've got 20.000 m3 of 80.000 target. During the sediment-dredging, the dam is closed, irrigation system below the dam is repaired, the illegal intakes are cut.


Now I know why the rice fields look like this at the lower course. Some farmer are still trying to plant rice, while waiting for rain to fall over their field and fill the dam, they make drilled-wells near to their field to supply the water needs.



MY FOREST

The forest was my childhood playground. I went there with my friends after school to find some wild fruits, to find some unique shaped branches, or just to hang around.
On day two Iedul Fitri, it was so hot at home so I asked my husband to go there to find some cool places. But this is what I found ….

No trees you can rest under. I mean you can rest under any trees, but the trees don’t have leaves. What’s so cool about it?

I pray for rain to soon fall over Wonogiri….

THE CIRCUS GIRLS
Para penonton bertepuk tangan ketika dua gadis kecil itu beraksi. Meliuk-liuk di ayunan tali yang menggantung (mungkin) 10 m di atas tanah.
The audience gives applause as the two little girls are in action. Swing (maybe) 10 meters above us.
Tapi aku diam, air mataku mengalir pelan tapi tak bisa berhenti. Umurnya mungkin baru 12 – 13 tahun. Seharusnya dia masih sekolah. Anakku sedang tes semester, hari ke-5. Tapi si gadis akrobat harus bekerja dengan kelenturannya.
But I didn’t. My tears fall slowly but it can’t stop. They may be only 12 -13 years old. They should be in school by the time. My daughter is having her fifth day exam. But the acrobat girls have to work with their flexibility
Mungkin aku sentimentil. Tapi aku sama sekali tidak melihat kegembiraan di wajahnya. Gemulai tubuhnya tidak diimbangi senyum, wajahnya tanpa ekspresi. Jadi kusimpulkan dia melakukannya dengan terpaksa.
May be I’m just too sentimental. But I can’t see happiness in their faces. The beautiful movements weren’t balanced with smile, there was no expression. So I assumed they do it because they have to.
Mudah-mudahan dia ikut home schooling....
I hope they are in a home schooling program….

Girls from circus



Para penonton bertepuk tangan ketika dua gadis kecil itu beraksi. Meliuk-liuk di ayunan tali yang menggantung (mungkin) 10 m di atas tanah.
The audience gives applause as the two little girls are in action. Swing (maybe) 10 meters above us.
Tapi aku diam, air mataku mengalir pelan tapi tak bisa berhenti. Umurnya mungkin baru 12 – 13 tahun. Seharusnya dia masih sekolah. Anakku sedang tes semester, hari ke-5. Tapi si gadis akrobat harus bekerja dengan kelenturannya.
But I didn’t. My tears fall slowly but it can’t stop. They may be only 12 -13 years old. They should be in school by the time. My daughter is having her fifth day exam. But the acrobat girls have to work with their flexibility
Mungkin aku sentimentil. Tapi aku sama sekali tidak melihat kegembiraan di wajahnya. Gemulai tubuhnya tidak diimbangi senyum, wajahnya tanpa ekspresi. Jadi kusimpulkan dia melakukannya dengan terpaksa.
May be I’m just too sentimental. But I can’t see happiness in their faces. The beautiful movements weren’t balanced with smile, there was no expression. So I assumed they do it because they have to.
Mudah-mudahan dia ikut home schooling....
I hope they are in a home schooling program….

KEMEJING

Dalam suatu kunjungan ke sebuah desa terisolir…

Kabupaten Wonosobo. Kecamatan Wadaslintang. Desa Kemejing. Rombongan dari Semarang ada empat orang: aku, dua orang ibu, dan supir. Dari Kabupaten Wonosobo ada empat orang, ditambah seorang dari Kodim Wonosobo.
Untuk menuju ke sana, dari Kota Wonosobo naik mobil kira-kira dua jam. Jalannya naik… Turun… Meliak… Meliuk…. Sampai ke Obyek Wisata Bendungan Wadaslintang. Selanjutnya perjalanan disambung dengan naik perahu motor menyeberang Waduk Wadaslintang. Aku udah pernah naik perahu motor, jadi bagiku gak istimewa amat. Tapi buat 2 ibu yang pergi bersamaku, rupanya ini pengalaman pertama. Jadi mereka agak-agak heboh.
Sebenarnya ada jalan darat dari Kecamatan Wadaslintang ke Desa Kemejing. Tapi itu berarti harus muterin waduk. Gak masalah kalau lagi musim kemarau. Tapi kalau lagi musim hujan, jalan itu gak mungkin bisa dilalui mobil. Jalannya belum aspal, masih tanah. Juga nanjak. Katanya, jalan kaki aja sepatunya bisa ketinggalan, nancep di jalan waktu kita melangkah. Parah banget kan. Jadi diputuskan naik perahu saja.
Naik perahu agak repot. Posisi penumpang harus imbang kanan kiri. Kalau enggak, perahunya miring ke sisi yang lebih banyak orangnya. Karena penumpangnya 9 orang, maka duduknya dibagi: empat di kanan, empat di kiri, satu di tengah. Aman deh.
Setelah sekitar 20 menit ‘berlayar’, kami mendarat. Rupanya langsung sampai ke pinggir Desa Kemejing. Di sana kami diantar melihat lokasi pembuatan jalan makadam sepanjang 1250 m. Tapi kami cuma melihat sekitar separuhnya. Soalnya jalannya nanjak, dan tatanan batu yang baru dipasang masih tajam (karena pakenya batu belah). Jadi jalannya lumayan ngos-ngosan.
Jalan baru ini lebarnya 2,5 m. Tadinya Cuma berupa jalan setapak yang lebarnya kurang dari 1 meter, dan salah satu sisinya tebing. Ngeri gak tuh kalau kepleset…. Tapi warga yang dilalui jalan itu merelakan sebagian tanah mereka untuk peningkatan jalan tersebut. Tanpa ganti rugi! Mulia banget kan…..
Batu yang digunakan untuk pengerasan jalan itu, ternyata juga diangkut pake perahu menyeberang waduk. Proses menaikkan batu ke perahu dan menurunkannya ke daratan dengan cara estafet. Jadi orangnya mesti banyak, jejer-jejer, lalu saling mengulurkan batu satu persatu. Pake acara pikul memikul pula. Bayangkan.
Siang-siang jalan-jalan bikin haus. Untung warga Desa Kemejing baik hati. Kami disuguhi kelapa muda ijo, fresh from the tree! Seorang satu, gak habis. Seger banget…
Sudah itu kami diajak ke rumah salah satu tokoh masyarakat. Katanya jaraknya lumayan jauh, bapak-bapak yang mengantar kami khawatir kami gak kuat jalan ke sana. Makanya dikerahkanlah pasukan warga bermotor untuk mengantar kami (padahal cuma tiga orang ibu-ibu, bapak-bapaknya tetep aja disuruh jalan…).
Ternyata sebenarnya gak jauh-jauh amat. Kalau gak kasihan sama yang udah njemput, aku sih lebih milih jalan kaki. Habis kalau bonceng motor malah ngeri. Jalannya jalan tanah yang habis kehujanan. Ban motornya selip-selip mulu. Aku takut jatuh. Si bapak bilang, ‘Ibu anteng aja, saya sudah tiap hari lewat jalur ini’. Mana bisa, aku bahkan sempet harus turun karena motornya bener-bener gak bisa jalan dan terpaksa harus diangkat dulu….
Kondisi jalan di Desa Kemijing semua seperti itu. Ada sih sebagian yang sudah makadam, tapi tertutup guguran tanah dari tebing di sisi jalan. Jadi ya sama juga bohong, jalannya tetep aja becek dan selip. Desa Kemejing adalah satu-satunya desa di Kabupaten Wonosobo yang belum punya sejengkal pun jalan aspal. Haru.
Di rumah Pak Darno kami dijamu makan siang. Sayur asem, mujair, ayam, oseng-oseng, sambel… semuanya enak. Sayur asemnya hasil kebun. Mujairnya hasil waduk. Ayamnya…. motong kali ya. Dagingnya alot banget. Aku baru ngeh waktu Bu Darno berkata, ‘Maaf, cuma seadanya. Habis kami baru tahu kalau mau ada tamu tadi jam sepuluh…’ Padahal waktu itu jam setengah satu. Kalau diitung-itung, dari menyembelih sampai mateng, Bu Darno cuma punya waktu sekitar dua jam. Pantesan alot. Ayam kampung kan masaknya harus berjam-jam kalau mau empuk.
Setelah beramah tamah dengan keluarga Pak Darno, Pak Kades, Pak Carik dan beberapa warga yang lain, kami pun pulang. Langit sudah mulai mendung. Mudah-mudahan tidak hujan. Soalnya air waduk lagi surut. Jadi dari dermaga ke perahu ada tambahan jalan kaki di daratan yang timbul karena permukaan air yang turun. Dan itu gak mudah, jalannya gak berbentuk, terjal, licin. Kalau hujan bisa lebih licin lagi.
Seorang Bapak berkata, “Mudah-mudahan hujannya nanti kalau kita sudah naik mobil”. Aku sambung, “Mudah-mudahan hujannya nanti kalau kami sudah sampai di Semarang”. Jauh bangeeeeet….
Langitnya makin gelap. Sampai di tengah waduk gerimis mulai turun. Lama-lama deras. Semua penumpang ngumpul di tengah, berdiri. Kalau duduk gak cukup, dan kalau di pinggir terciprat hujan. Semua orang diam, aku juga. Gimana kalau sampai di tepi nanti hujan belum turun. Gak ada yang bawa payung, dan pasti susah naik ke tepi waduk… Lama-lama aku capek berdiri, jadi aku duduk di pinggir, ngelihatin hujan. Basah-basah dikit, seger aja.
Beberapa menit sebelum perahu merapat, hujannya reda. Bukan ding, di sisi waduk yang itu rupanya memang belum hujan. Semua berseru, ‘Alhamdulillaaah…’. Kami selamat kambali ke lokasi tempat mobil kami diparkir. Setelah mengucapkan terima kasih kepada para pengantar, kami pamit untuk pulang. Hujan baru benar-benar turun ketika kami sudah kira-kira limabelas menit dalam perjalanan pulang, dan kami selamat sampai di Semarang.
…….
…….
Alhamdulillah, meskipun ada yang bilang rumahku agak-agak mblusuk, kampung, tepencil, de el el, gak ada apa-apanya dibanding dengan Desa Kemejing. Jalan di perumahanku semua paving block. Jarak dari perumahanku ke jalan raya cuma +/- 700 meter, walaupun masih setengah jam dari kota. Tapi itu reachable!
Bayangkan, sebelum ada waduk, dan belum ada SD di Desa Kemejing, anak Pak Darno kalau berangkat sekolah jam tiga pagi, jalan kaki. Kalau disuruh berangkat jam empat nggak mau, bisa terlambat. Selain jauh, pasti medannya sulit banget (aku lupa bertanya berapa jarak dari rumah ke sekolah). Di Semarang, aku masuk kantor jam tujuh. Tapi aku berangkat paling pagi jam enam seperempat. Naik mobil atau motor. Nyaman.
Hebat banget anak Pak Darno. Kemauannya itu loh! Sekarang dia udah jadi tentara di Surabaya. Kalau aku, mungkin pilih gak sekolah aja….
…….
…….
Alhamdulillah, hujan baru turun setelah kami menyeberang kembali. Itu sekitar jam dua kurang sedikit. Padahal katanya, biasanya begitu lewat jam dua belas, pasti sudah hujan. Ternyata sewaktu hujan di tengah waduk, semua orang berdoa mohon keselamatan. Aku juga sih…. Tapi gak nyangka kalau ternyata para bapak itu ternyata takut banget. Rupanya mereka pernah punya pengalaman, kehujanan di tengah penyeberangan. Deras. Berangin. Dan untuk beberapa waktu perahu yang mereka tumpangi berputar-putar aja di tengah waduk. Oh……

Aku bersyukur atas perlindungan yang Allah berikan kepada kami sepanjang perjalanan.
Allah menyayangiku.