RomanTech 2.0 by a Silentlover

Time of Procrastination a month

In the mid of January, I was joining a kind of study tour for 5 days. We're going to Le Havre, a port city at north France. It takes 6-8 hours from Nantes to get there by bus.

On the first hours way back to Nantes, my phone battery was drained. It shutted down without any warning. As I was in the middle of a conversation with my bf, I immediately dredged up my bag tried to find a spare battery. But it wasn't there. And I could not find anywhere else. It must be lost somewhere. 

Soon when I got home, it's about 7pm at my timezone and 1am at his, I turned it on and read messages from him, questioning where I am. I texted him, saying sorry and telling what actually happen. He just smiled and gave me a smooch emoticon. He then told me to have a rest.

Morning on the next day, I woke up and found a concise texts from him just like this:

I buy 2 batteries and 1 power bank for you, those are all ready to ship by this noon.

Each battery may stands for one or two days while the power bank is equal with 3-4 batteries. So you can still be "on" without relying on power jack for about 3-4 days.

What? I still needed some time to fully gather my soul after long sleeping before digesting any of technologycal-related information like that. I have quite many questions to him afterward and his answer was just not far than "it's shipping, just wait for it".

A week after, I received a package from 7438 miles away contained 2 batteries and 1 power bank. Nothing else. I said my thank-you and ask him just like all women all over the world will, why did you do this? 

I do not want to lose you

He replied.

the cute facts are taken from here

Time of Procrastination

My truly old bad habit.

I procrastinate almost everything but sleeping. Or gaming.

It can be 5 minutes, an hour, two days, a month, or even a year.

I believe that I actually was born perfectionist as I am not easily satisfied with what I'm doing, I always ask myself to do more. But then I grew up with this bad habit that makes my work is quite far from "perfect". Let alone to be perfect, most of the times I finished my work because it must be finished at the time being. It then leaves me stranded with guilty feeling and regrets.

Many plans were not executed.

Many ideas were poorly manifested.

Many notions were barely realized.

Many dreams were not achieved.

Many things were just listed in the calendar.

Many things were just landed in those post-it.

Many things were just stuck in my brain.

Until I start counting. If I procrastinate "only" 10 minutes for "just"3 activities, it'll cost me half an hour per day, multiplied to be 15 HOURS per month, and 180 HOURS per year!

How many great things in my life were skipped? 

To start breaking the habit is also a new problem. And of several choices, I chose to start from here. I chose to start doing thing as simple as it can be so that my brain won't think that it's hard to do.

From this blog. From now on, I will add a note of "time of procrastination" for each upcoming post just to let myself know how long that post has been buried in my draft box or maybe in my mind. To boldly tell me how long I wasted.

I know that it's just a post. But the more I procrastinate, the less possibility to write down even a short post. So, the number will tell me a lot about the progress.

I guess I'll surprise myself.

taken from here

Tu Me Manques

Quand tu prends ma main

Quand on parle de tous et de rien

Quand ton nez touche le mien

Quand tu mal tes mains pour mon oreiller

Quand on est sur bord de la mer

Quand tu m’attends de gravir la montagne

Tu m'as dit t’inquiète pas...
Tu m'as dit je serai toujours là...

Quand j’étais en bateau sur la Seine

Quand j’ai traversé le pont du Rhin

Quand les feuilles virent au rouge

Quand les arbres couverts de neige

de l'automne à l'hiver
du calme d'Etretat à l'éclat de la Tour Eiffel

Tu me manques...

took this pic in a park in front of my campus :')

I’m a (stil rational) Huge Fans of Agnes Monica!

That’s a kind of a bold statement methinks, realizing there are sooooo many haters out  there and even in my inner circle, hehe... And on the other hand, there are also soooo many die-hard-fans which might hate and curse me for several words I jot down here :p And that's why I put the words in the bracket on the title above. A lot of her die-hard fans barely accept any negative comment/ opinion addressed to her, even if it's true! Hahahah...

Yah well, I write this post because I’m just feeling deeply amazed watching her latest performance in one of TV station last night. She sang 3 newest songs from her soon upcoming album consecutively. And it was DOPE! The band, especially. Don't mean to put her at the second part of the awesomeness, no, she’s still the star, haha... But, the band is indeed great and I’m quite sure that it's also because of her strong involvement. And the songs! I already like two of it at my first time listening to it (that last night show was the second time she performed those songs). Aaand, those 3 were written by herself. Cool!!! You can watch it here......

 How wasss itttt? Uber cool wasn’t it?

Anyway, loving her since childhood, I then bought her first (adult) album with no much consideration. To be honest, I was really disappointed. If there’s no “Hanya Cinta Yang Bisa” in it, it would only be stored on the shelf. And her voice...not bad, it’s just not well-formed yet.

But she made very much progress, in terms of both singing and dancing skill, in her second album. You might understand what I meant by listening to “Bilang Saja” and then “Tak Ada Logika”. Not to forget, her taste in fashion is kind of upgraded. Maybe this is just me, but at her first album, I felt that she’s trying too much to be called funky. Well, teenager...

That’s only an honest opinion of mine dear you all the die-hard-fans. Want to kill me now? :p

My college friends and my office colleagues know very well that I adore her and even did some “stupid things” such as imitate her dancing. I have no problem with singing, but danciiiing...LOL! Obviously FAILED!

Actually, one thing that I really admire so much from her is her serious and continous hard work! No doubt about it. People call it (too) ambitious, but try objectively look what she’ve done and what she’s still doing up till now. She is now becoming a really great performer, who’s not just CAN sing or CAN dance but do those things AMAZINGLY. The way she moves her hands, her legs, her body, INCREDIBLE. It’s like, how can she do thatttt! This one is my favorite (1.30-2.10 is the WOW part). And never get bored to watch her stomping dance.

If you’re questioning her voice, try to LISTEN TO one of her live performance this one...just advice, you’d better just listen otherwise you’ll be distracted by her wardrobe :p
Or my most favorite song of her here... Lllllooveee it!

Well, I can’t imagine if she’s able to make her dream of going international comes true like...5 years ago, with her skills 5 years ago, with her experiences 5 years ago, how would it be...  But I’m pretty much sure, she’s now completely ready to achieve that! And she deserves it!

To end this post, I would like to wish her a best luck, keep aiming high but keep the humbleness, and keep up the best work :)

Good News Good News!

Today is 15 Dec and I will have my oral exam in 20! FIVE DAYS to go and I still speak French like a baby learn to talk!

Ohhh I'll be dead! 

But God is always kind. In this such "i-don't-know-how-to-call-it-maybe-a-most-panic" moment, God gave me a loooot of happiness! December is running very nice this far so I can't resist myself not to jot those things down here and put my books off for a while :))

The greatest yet helpfull thing is, I finally managed to transfer all of the voice memos (most are lecture recording so those are damn important) AND moved it into the PC's drive! Hoaaaahhhhh! This was not easy as it seems. Because firstly, I and also my geek boyfriend, up till now don't know why my PC refused to install iTunes. We already worked on several solution like 32-64 bit thingy or downloaded and installed additional applications suggested by the netters but nothing works. And when it was installed, the voice memos weren't synced. After browsed and did some worrying trial, voilaaa that is a wrapppppp!

And another "finally"...I got my bank card in end of November soooo then I could get a phone card subscription that provides an internet connection and BB service. Yaaaay! I'm finally ON!

I had my cartography exam last Thursday. You know, doing the same thing using a english language software is already frustrating for me, and it's in French!  So had been through it without only starring at the PC's screen really made me proud of myself. My lecturer was even giving a fingercrossed special for me before starting the exam! Hahaha... Well, maybe the result will be good or maybe not that good, but I don't really care! I dashing-ly passed it and did submit some real map files :)

I finally got an appointment with my thesis supervisor. Well, not so fast, it will be in week 2 of January, but it means I'll have more time to prepare my paper. To add the good news, one of my classmate ever worked in the similar field as my thesis theme and she told me that she will help me on the literatures and best practices in France! Wohooooo....magnifique!

The scarf accident was settled!!! I and my friend, whose scarf flew, went together looking for a scarf to replace the poor-flew scarf. We went in and out to 3-4 significant stores, because I, myself, want him to get a scarf as best as it can be. We did not find the same scarf but, thanks to Springfield, it looks good on him, right? :)

And the wise man is true when he said happiness happens when your loved one is happy. My boyfriend told me that he would get an easy-money project soon and he's happy about that, so I'm mooooore than happy! Lalalala :))

Last but the loveliest thing! After the exam, I will be in another city for a week of snowy holiday trip!!! Airplane ticket and hotels were booked! Am ready to pack!

Oooolraaaait, now I've to go back studying! 

Cao!

P.S The Mayan could be right, 21 Dec will be a doomsday, and it's maybe because of my exam :p

Who Can Beat Me?

...
My friend: itu bukan ketinggalan, tapi kamu tinggal...
Me: nggaaaak, beneran ketinggalan, aku lupa...
My friend: nggak, kamu itu CEROBOH!
*singgg*
Me: Iya...terus gimana dong...
...
[Marseille, Oktober 2012]

That was one of my most desperate respond to my dear friend when I was (after such a long time, did it again) almost losing stuff...

Well, walaupun ternyata waktu itu dia hanya bermaksud iseng karena sebetulnya barang itu sudah “diamankan” teman yang lain...I hardly forgot that moment. Not because the word hurted me inside, not because it happened during my holiday trip in Marseille,  but solely because he’s just true. And that’s why I answered that way. I did not have any argument to defend myself or to claim that i’m not sloppy.

Because sadly, I DEFINITELY AM.

Below is the history of my clumsiness (as I remember):

1.   Ketinggalan kunci pagar/ kamar kos-kosan

Sekitar 4-6 kali. Terjadi ketika di Semarang (tempat kuliah) dan Jakarta (tempat kerja).

Most painful moment: Ketika saya mengira saya meninggalkan kunci kamar di meja kantor karena tidak menemukannya di kantong kecil di tas saya. I went back to my office by ojek (it was late at night) and found nothing...dan ternyata dia cuma nyelip di antara barang2 di dalam tas..

2.   Kehilangan HP

5 kali. Hilang di sini termasuk hilang karena dicuri/ dicopet dan juga jatuh di jalan.

Di Cepu, I dropped my boyfriend’s sellphone on the asphalt road and broke it into pieces. (!)

Most painful moment: Di Semarang, kantong berisi 2 HP dan juga beberapa kartu ATM saya jatuh di jalanan entah di mana saya lupa. Ditemukan orang2 yang kemudian memeras saya secara halus. I just had a few cash at that time, and they even suggested me to go to the nearest ATM. They waited me while keeping my broken phones and all of my cards. Pret.

3.    Kehilangan dompet

3 kali. Kediri, Jakarta, dan Balikpapan.

I never mind the money karena biasanya juga ga banyak-banyak cash di dalam dompet. Biasanya sih. Tapi bagian lebih menggemaskan dari kehilangan dompet adalah hilangya kartu-kartu atau mungkin kuitansi/slip/tanda terima yang cukup penting yang kadang jauh lebih ribet proses ngurusnya dibandingkan dengan kerja kumpulin duit lagi.

Most painful moment: Kehilangan DOMPET TEBAL di Balikpapan yang memuat uang 6 digit, kartu ATM, kartu member segala rupa, dan...tiket ke Derawan. *nangis

4.    Ketinggalan kartu ATM di mesin ATM

Sekitar 8-10 kali. Atau lebih. Terjadi di Semarang dan Jakarta.

Most painful moment: Frekuensi ketinggalan ATM pelan tapi pasti reda setelah model mesin ATM diperbarui sehingga kartu ATM keluar lebih dulu sebelum uang keluar. But to complete this list, saya pernah meninggalkan mesin ATM dengan hanya mengambil kartu TAPI MENINGGALKAN UANG ratusan ribu yang keluar belakangan. Saya sadar kira-kira 20 menit kemudian, ya lenyaplah duitnya... [Gandaria City, Jakarta]

...saya pernah punya 4 charger untuk HP yang sama karena seringnya beli-beli charger ketika bepergian, saya beberapa kali balik dari kantor ke kos ketika jam makan siang karena lupa bawa charger laptop, saya pernah bussiness trip 2 hari dengan susah dihubungi karena lupa bawa HP, saya beberapa kali meninggalkan kantong belanjaan ketika memilih2 barang, dan serangkaian “lupa lupa lupa” lainnya...

CAN YOU BEAT THAT?

Did I do nothing?

Well, I’m proudly say, I’m improved.

By always creating lists of to-do or to-bring, by putting all of my stuff in their permanent-fixed spot, by being as simple as I can be (e.g pergi cuma bawa dompet dan hape, atau semua ada dalam satu tas kecil, jadi tidak banyak yang perlu diingat). Or even by only using my belongings. Jadi kalaupun akhirnya hilang yah ga merugikan orang lain.

I did it since years ago. And it works quite well.

Until...
That super windy day. This time at Nantes...

I flew the scarf of a friend of mine.

Worse thing, the scarf was stuck fast on a fast-driven car :(
I checked in the website soon when I went back home, the autumn wind was 35km/hr that evening. Ironically, at the moment the scarf flew, I was waiting a bus and about to go to meet him to give the scarf back :((
Yang paling saya sesalkan, di angin sekencang itu, saya hanya menaruh atau tepatnya MENGGANTUNGKAN scarf itu di tas kamera. TANPA DIIKAT KEMANAPUN.
I never know before if careless has close meaning with stupid...

Physically, that’s just a scarf. I might buy another scarf to replace it. May even be more expensive one, or more sophisticated one, or any other “more”.

BUT I fully understand that a stuff might be way more precious than some amount of money.

And that put me in a very deep guilty feeling. Di antara kepusingan dengan persiapan ujian dan tugas kelompok, I spent days, to dig the city centre to look for exactly the same scarf but failed to find :((

I'm truly sad. 

I might give him a roundbound ticket to Singapore and I know he will gladly accept, but then I realize I’m not that rich...

Or maybe I can buy him bunch of videogames DVD cause I know he’s a crazy gamers, but then again I’m not sure I can afford that bunch...

Or even anything won’t be equal to replace the scarf, Budi Jatmiko ?

:(

Being Sick Yet Productive is Possible Nowadays

Ini hari ke-5 setelah 4 hari sebelumnya saya melakukan sebagian besar aktivitas di kasur... Bukan penyakit yang berat sebetulnya, tapi demam dan pusing yang menggila benar-benar berhasil membuat saya oleng ketika harus berdiri lama-lama. Ditambah penyakit negara dunia ketiga, diare kecil. Saya sebut "kecil" karena saya pernah mengalami yang "besar", dengan frekuensi trip kasur-WC yang jauh lebih sering. Tapi kombo diare kecil dengan demam itu akhirnya membuat saya seharian skip kuliah dan 3 hari berikutnya berdiam diri di kamar. Ada bagusnya juga sakit di week-end, ga perlu bolos kuliah banyak-banyak... Maklum, berhubung masuk kuliah pun saya belum tentu paham, apalagi kalau bolos, jadi, unlike pas di Indo, di sini harus rajin-rajin kuliah :p

Sebetulnya yang membuat agak khawatir itu karena fakta bahwa demam itu bukan penyakit tapi hanya gejala. Jadinya saya kepikiran sendiri ancaman kalau demam ini berujung ke sakit typhus seperti di awal tahun kemarin. OH NO!

THE WORST THING of being sick di sini adalah ketika saya harus menyiapkan makan sendiri. Dan saya harus tetap makan demi kondisi yang membaik, walaupun nafsu makan nol. Di sini, ga ada tukang nasi goreng atau bubur ayam lewat depan rumah. Jadi, tidak lain tidak bukan, saya harus masak. To make it's even worse, ketika ternyata...BERAS HABIS. So, I pushed my-weak-self to go to buy the rice at the nearest supermarket. Thank God, nearest store is indeed near, tepat di depan rumah, ga akan lebih dari 100 langkah total dimulai dari kamar sampai ke rak beras di dalamnya. Yah, kira-kira jadi 250 langkah bolak-balik plus ngantri di kasir. Suhu 5 derajat diatasi dengan 2 jaket dan 1 mantel plus syal dan boot. Kalau di Indonesia, saya seperti mau makan di warung penyet depan rumah tapi dressed-up sama seperti kalau mau ke mall. Well, yang penting bisa beli beras. Perut melayu.

Kehilangan nafsu makan, buat saya itu suatu kondisi anomali sekaligus gejala yang sangat jelas bahwa sedang "ada yang salah". Dan keanehan ini sudah dimulai dari 2 hari sebelumnya. Saya yang biasanya agresif melihat makanan yang idle-makanable menjadi harus dicek dan ditungguin hanya untuk memastikan bahwa saya beneran makan :(

Tapi saya bersyukur, diare sudah berakhir kemarin pagi, pusing berakhir kemarin sore, tinggal demam-demam caper yang masih mendorong badan saya untuk terus berdiam di selimut.

THE GOOD THINGS...masih cukup banyak yang bisa saya lakukan dari kasur. Karena berdiri dan bergerak banyak-banyak membuat saya oleng, dengan Oasis sebagai panutan, "so I start a revolution from my bed", hahah... bukan hal-hal besar, but at least saya tidak sama sekali tidak menghasilkan apa-apa...

1. Checking all of my administrative applications online, mulai dari mencoba akses internet banking (cek saldo, uji coba transfer), cek data diri di website CAF untuk housing allowance, dan cek proses residence permit by email.

2. Upgrading and playing my applications in iPod, beli extended kamus French-English, "bersih-bersih" storage dan berhasil reserve some large space in iPod, upgrade gtalk dengan push notification, battle Songpop dengan teman-teman yang dikenal dan ga lagi cari lawan randomly :)

3. Upgrading my dormant blackberry, beluuuum...belum aktif BB service-nya, tapi saya akhirnya INSTALL WHATSAPP LAGI, puas kalian? Hahah, kita lihat ya kali ini berapa lama dia akan bertahan :p

Saya juga jadi tahu sedikit lebih banyak tentang konflik Israel-Palestina, ada lagi selebtwit yang jadi jualan buku, dan juga epic glance of Brittany (now definitely in my to-visit-list)!

Lumayan produktif kan ya, sayangnya...no progress in terms of academic thingy. Ga sanggup secara fisik dan psikis :(

Yah, paling ga, hal-hal yang biasanya ga tersentuh sekarang jadi malah tergerayangi, hahaha...

Atau jangan-jangan, selama ini peras otak demi mengerti instruksi materi dan tugas kuliah in French yang menghabiskan terlalu banyak waktu dan energi?

Doakan kemampuan bahasa saya meningkat ya biar bisa sedia waktu lebih banyak buat main Songpop :))

A Small Huge World

Di situ ada tawa dan tangis

Di situ ada bahagia dan sedih

Di situ ada kesal dan marah

Di situ ada khawatir dan gelisah

Di situ kita berbagi rasa

Di situ ada segala cerita

Tak perlu luas

Asal hati kita lapang

Tak perlu megah

Asal batin kita tenang

Hanya selega berdua

Tapi tak ada yang setara

Karena di situ ada kita
Melihat seisi dunia

Bersama mimpi-mimpi kita

:)

what do you think?
Image taken from http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/