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Thea October 6th, 2008

Ever since I live apart from my family, going home is my favorite activity, especially when it comes to ramadhan then continues to Eidl Fitr. In Eidl Fitr, everything turns more special as all of familiy members gather and it’s the moment when we can meet each other and forgive each other. Being at home with family is a priceless moment, especially for me. I am used to live apart from my family since several years a go. I live at Jakarta, my mum is signed at Cirebon, previously at Semarang, and my dad is at Bandung, before he’s at Yogyakarta. My grandma and my younger brother stay at Yogya. Thus, I couldn’t say there’s anything more precious than having them near with me. I am more than sure that it’s also why poeple do “mudik” every year.

A missing feeling of a place to call home. It’s the ground of that action. Mudik isn’t merely a ritual or an activity done year by year. It’s a time when poeple going home and finding their true life after going to the battlehill, earning cent by cent to survive life. City is the place where they look for material, and going home is their sanctuary where they find the divine spirit.

It also drives people more than willing to stand in queue for hours to get ticket. It’s also why people put their life at risk by clinging only to a part of locomotive(which is very far from safe). And it’s also why people don’t mind drowned in crowd of economy-class passengers or sleep at train station, wishing they can get one or two available seats the day after. Every body just wants to be home.

My dad didn’t mind at all to drive from Cirebon since the 5 AM until 4 PM to arrive safely at Jogja. Though he knew i took much longer than usual trip. Neither did my Mum. As for me, I never counted the price I should pay for seeing them at our lovely home. I could meet my family and my new family, accordingly my husband and his big family.

We’re united at one, at place called home.

And they are too….people who miss their home badly:)

ps: for us who are in struggle to build our own home- sweet-home:). Jiayou!!!

• Family
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Thea September 25th, 2008

My satisfaction with the mass transportation in Indonesia is never fulfilled. Again, this year I am disappointed as I can’t go home to Jogja with the nice-affordable mode.

It’s commonly known that nearing to Eidl Mubarak, there’s a huge surge of people commuting from Jakarta to other cities. People are more than willing to take any risk, despite conditions such as poor facilities or increasing fares, as long as they can go home for celebrating Eidl Mubarak at their hometown. Unfortunately, the condition of transportation modes remains similar year by year. No improvements at all. No enhancement on the number, quality or access to get it. Even, recent years, mudik with motorcycle has been becoming a trend. Why? One of the reason as it’s cheap than taking buses or trains or planes. Meanwhile, motorcycle is basically not designed to transport people within far distance. Moreover, it’s less safer than anykind of mode.

Three years ago, the first year I worked at Jakarta, I stood in line for getting one ticket to go home to Jogja. That was my first ritual of mudik, anyway. i queued for almost two hours and started it since dawn just left, 5:30 in the morning to be precise. By the time I was getting near to the locket, I had to be discontent as it’s announced that the executive ticket was sold out. The one left was business class. I had no choice. And I got one business ticket, but only for a short period as I shortly sold it to a friend. My mum didn’t allow me to take the business class. ” It was too dangerous for a woman like you” She said.

The broker or middlemen, to my opinion, are very powerful in this “critical” moment. Can you find any reason why a locket which was just open about three minutes but could sell all tikcets quota?? It’s insane and ridiculous. It really happened when my friend queued for executive train ticket at Gambir early last month. That’s why I was so so so pessimistic if I can have one no matter effrorts I did, except buying with the broker itself:D. Don’t you think they cheat with the insiders:))??

This afternoon, my husband left me earlier to Jogja with Ayik, Ajik and Herman. They drive car and need to be at Jogja soon. Dad will embark from Bandung and pick Mummy at Cirebon. Both of them will take a car cruising the north coast route (pantura) in the peak moment. Tomorrow, in the evening, I’ll go with plane, whose fare is doubled than usual:((. Soon, we’ll meet at Jogja.

Anyway…”selamat mudik” everybody:)

• Hometown , Every Day Life
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Thea September 21st, 2008

Enduring married life is nice and fun so far. That’s what I said to a Singaporean colleague several days ago when He came to my office. Yeah it is. So far, I haven’t met the so-called hell of marriage with my hubby. But hey, I am not that naive coz I know anytime soon, such things will intervene in our happy life.

Referring to what elaborated in book 7 stages of Marriage, the phase where my husband and I are now is called Passion. In this phase couple often finds romance and intense attraction between them which lead to commitment. This is also said as honeymoon phase.

Further to the passion phase is realisation phase.Well, this phase is marked with disappointment and conflict. In such unavoidable phase, couple can lay groundwork for a long future hand in hand.

Marriage life is about sharing ( I ever wrote about this, remember???). The collision between self interest and shared interest often found in this phase, Rebellion. Expert says that knowing the difference bteween a destructive desire to flee and a healthy need to be your true self will be important passing this phase.

After three stages before-stated, there it goes the cooperation phase where marriage means building career, managing money and household or raising children.Watchout!! This phase can be rocky.

Reunion phase is when all children grow up and couple as parents can enjoy their time together, endure their quality of time. Remembering the nice memories when just guet married, I bet:D.

Job loss, deteriorating illness or death can happen in the explosion phase. Couples are challenged if their marriage is a source of solace or sorely tried by new roles, limitation and fears.

After going through the rocky path, experiencing agony and celebrating joy together, couples arrive to a phase where they know they have bigger understanding and better pay-off in the process of two becoming one. This is where blissfull moments are very near and this is what you call Completion.

So, in what stage are you now?? Let’s put endeavour to win our future ahead!!

See also at www.ogithea.com

• In Love
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Thea September 16th, 2008

Another tragedy broke out in this country. 15th September 2008, 21 women died while queuing for receiving zakat from the so-called local philanthropist at Pasuruan, East Java.

The amount of money didn’t pay-off the life. Good intention didn’t end at the anticipated result. Despite, it claimed toll whose number wasn’t few.

We’re failed to learn from the past lessons as this is not the first calamity happening due to zakat delivery. While there are reliable zakat institutions, which manage zakat professionally, there are still people who prefer to give zakat directly to the receivers. it’s not wrong, but the problem emerges when they don’t pay attention to the method of delivery.

From the news I read, I know that H.Syukron (the giver) announced about the zakat delivery at the local radio. One doesn’t have to be genius to predict how many people will come for it. Hence, to anticipating the huge number people coming, H.Syukron must have set the method.

To recall, similar tragedy ever happened. But every case ended at nothing, without further investigation by the police. It seems because it’s related with the the divine intention (read: to give zakat), the authority didn’t do anything. Everything is just gone. And last two days, it happened again. My personal opinion says that this time police should investigate the case thoroughly.

30 thousands, for some of us, isn’t worthed to be waited with such effort. However, for the poor, it means a lot. Meaning a lot to have meal for the next days or meaning a lot to buy their children firecrackers.

The poor, is always marginalized, never put with their dignity. As Hidayat Nur Wahid said:

It’s much better if the giver comes and gives the zakat directly to them (the receiver).

• Thoughts
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Thea September 10th, 2008

The Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋節, zhōng qiū jié), also known as the Moon Festival, is a popular East Asian celebration of abundance and togetherness, dating back over 3,000 years to China’s Zhou Dynasty. In Malaysia and Singapore, it is also sometimes referred to as the Lantern Festival or Mooncake Festival. The Chinese Lantern Festival is held on the 15th day of the first lunar month.

The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month of the Chinese calendar (usually around mid- or late-September in the Gregorian calendar), a date that parallels the Autumn Equinox of the solar calendar. This is the ideal time, when the moon is at its fullest and brightest, to celebrate the abundance of the summer’s harvest. The traditional food of this festival is the mooncake, of which there are many different varieties.

The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the two most important holidays in the Chinese calendar (the other being the Chinese Lunar New Year), and is a legal holiday in several countries. Farmers celebrate the end of the summer harvesting season on this date. Traditionally, on this day, Chinese family members and friends will gather to admire the bright mid-autumn harvest moon, and eat moon cakes and pomeloes together. Accompanying the celebration, there are additional cultural or regional customs, such as:

• Eating moon cakes outside under the moon
• Putting pomelo rinds on one’s head
• Carrying brightly lit lanterns
• Burning incense in reverence to deities including Chang’e
• Planting Mid-Autumn trees
• Collecting dandelion leaves and distributing them evenly among family members
• Lighting lanterns on towers

·         Fire Dragon Dances

The above-stated description was on email I received from our company vendor. He claimed that this year his company wouldn’t send any moon-cake due to the environment’s sake:D. Happy Mid-Autumn Festival for those celebrating it:)

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Thea September 7th, 2008

A message came to my inbox from greenlifestyle group. My husband and I laughed having read its thought-provoking content.

Take a look to this pics:

And this:

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Thea September 3rd, 2008

A demand urged by the association of Malaysian music industry employee to restrict the Indonesian songs played in Malaysia radio stations. I read this release at The Jakartapost. Not only do Indonesian migrant workers dominate Malaysia, but also it’s songs. It is said that bulk of Indonesia song is played in radio stations causing Malaysian songs less popular in its own land, hitting the Malaysian music industry.

It’s widely known that Indonesian song are very popular in Malaysia. Therefore, the association requests 90:10 ratio for Malaysian songs.

More than three decades ago, Malaysian who was a newly independent country, imported teachers from Indonesia. Now, its education qualification is better than Indonesia at average. There was an awareness that they needed improvement on human quality and the government was willing to move the political will by importing teacher from Indonesia.

The similar concern appears now in the art field. Realizing they only play a minor role in their own country, the association initiates govt to regulate the songs played by radio station. The ultimate goal is clear, they want to be the number one player in their own music field.

Let’s see if the govt will approve the request. Sometimes, art isn’t merely art. It’s also related with political move:)

• Thoughts
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Thea August 31st, 2008

1. Palin is the first woman to run on a Republican Presidential ticket.

2. She’s also the first female governor of northern state of US, Alaska.

3. Being sworn as governor in 2006, she was the youngest one ever (42 years old).

4. Born in Idaho, she has been spending her life-time at Alaska.

5. Palin encountered politic world first at 1992 when she won seat on the Wasilla City Council.

6. Then she became town’s mayor for four years.

7. She served as mayor for two terms.

8. Earning statewide recognition by pursuing for nomination for lieutenant governor

9. In that nomination, she lost by only 2,000 votes

10. She has no national experience before being endorsed as running mate of McCain

resumed from an article at www.time.com

Ps: I am still supporter of Barack Obama:D

• Review
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Thea August 31st, 2008

I just realized that we mistyped the address in our wedding invitation.

As the akad nikah was held in my house, we also put my address in the invitation. Without checking and rechecking, we wrote KM 14.5.

It caused a problem then when my office colleagues from Jakarta intended my akad instead of the reception (because they didn’t get ticket for going back to Jakarta). They lost when they went straight to KM 14.5. As consequence, in the last minutes before being called to meet my husband, I still picked up phone call from some of my friends who lost somewhere between KM 14.5 and KM 10.5, where my house is situated. I am so sorry Pal:D.

Then I found out that my house was situated on Jalan Adisucipto Km 10.5 not in 14.5 as I assumed before. I never paid attention where it was actually because it’s our new house and we moved there not more that 1.5 years ago. Before settling at the current house, we stayed at our old house at Jalan Gejayan. As my Dad moved to Bandung, then our family no longer entitled to stay at that house. Then my parents built a new house on a land which they had bought years before.

Our old house was far smaller than the new one. Yet it had a very large yard with green grass and was located in the heart of city. We could go everywhere easily. Ogi loved to sit in the red chair at the veranda while enjoying the breeze from big trees surrounding my old house.

However, I also love the new one. It’s bigger and more than enough to accommodate almost all of my relatives who attended my wedding last August. It.s very near with the airport so Ogi and I didn’t have to rush when catching our flight to Bali:). The neighborhood is very lovely and humble. Their hospitality is a true example of togetherness, which I found rare at big city.

Suddenly…I miss my house:(

see also at www.ogithea.com

• Hometown
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Thea August 26th, 2008

I am learning that marriage is kinda mix salad in a bowl. In there, you may find crunchy vegetable, soft fruit, the sweet flavor from fruits, salty one from mayonnaise and sour sometimes bits.

If I may make an analogy, those are what we experience in marriage life, the combination of twos, each with different personality traits, attitudes, or background. Don’t choose only the fruit or merely lick the mayonnaise. Despite, you have to eat it as a part with your silver spoon. That’s the way I conceive it.

Don’t worry, salad remains salad, and it stays and will always be delicious to enjoy. Freshening…by nature:)

PS: written after a nice chat with Brandalan in the afternoon.

• In Love
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