New Year Coming, New Bracelet All Set

Found these bracelet at the mall today! The old me would brace self and find strings for a little D.I.Y. But now, it's a grab and pay thing hahaha... It's pretty cheap so I bought it without second thought-ing it. Gonna wear it tomorrow! Yeay!

A More Festive Christmas Dinner

I am lucky enough to be able to go to another Christmas dinner, gathered by good-good-friends since elementary school. Our group has grown larger over the years, and this was an annual meeting for us, every christmas, exchanging christmas gifts. Hilarious christmas gifts. The first annual dinner, I got an ash-tray which I already misplaced now, and this year, I got an ethnic necklace, orange, and bold.

After eating while chit-chatting, we decided to take pictures using christmas themed attributes, unfortunately I forgot to bring any, but fortunately, Andra brought a series of fake moustaches.  Those who didn't bring any attributes, wore those fake moustaches. It was fun! We look like guys from an all boy school growing hairs and having funny-unusual hair-cuts for a boy. Well actually we look even more ridiculous than that. We look more like hobos.

Since I already had dinner, so I ordered pizzettes and caffe latte. But, to top it all, there's a large red velvet cake as dessert. Yum.

red velvet cake

little bites

le dinner table

gift exchange

moustache parade

old time band with extra moustache

Photos by : Irene Hutami

Christmas Dinner

I love going out to Christmas dinner. This year, I'm spending it with college friends and also long time lady-friends. I love the way we ate together on a long table seating across and beside each other. Wondering what are the people at the end of the table are talking about, seeing all the happy smiley face.

With my college friends, we went to Ocha & Bella. A very beautiful restaurant. Though the price is pretty choking, but I guess it's worth it, with the delicious gnocchi that I ordered making me very full and also the beer was cold and very refreshing. It was not the food that matters the most, but the togetherness in all the way.

the dinner table

Irene - Aya

the ladies

all photos by Donald Epiphanius

Soo...

this is the official Christmas greetings :), it would never be complete without the dogs!

Merry Christmas y'all!!

Bliss

I never realized, how a simple a Christmas greeting, can make you smile very easy on this very wonderfull day :)

Happy Christmas everyone, may the blessings surround us all, now and forever :)

picture from here

How Again Do You Spell Fun?

Last week was the Singapore trip. Aside from all the foot sore and almost sleepless nights, it was fun! You may thought an architectural excursion with 41 other architects, mostly grown-up men (only 6 girls out of 41 participants) would be boring. But no. I can't care less, though the jokes are going to "that" directions, but the whole journey was fun. I will bore you with architectural facts. So get your.... I don't know. 

Meeting up at the airport at 4 am, is well... not a problem at first. Not until 18 hours later that is. I couldn't sleep on the plane, since I was too excited. And so we landed at Singapore around 9 or 10 am and straight to the first place, the BCA Academy. It's a school and research center (if I am not mistaken). The building is an application of various technology on how to save energy. It was really cool. How they use room cooling from the floor instead of from the ceiling (because actually people need cooling on the lower part of the room where they stand), the use of solar panel almost in every area possible, the window system, and even the wall uses greenery for the cooling system. It's super energy efficient. The building it self was not really aesthetic, but I can tell, even the weird roof with light ducts popping out, the slightly awkward beam system, they are made for a cause. 

After lunch, we went to URA, Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore. I must say, for a very small country like Singapore, their urban planning is pretty strict and well planned. Old buildings are preserved very well, still works, and still used. Abandoned buildings are very less seen. With very little land to build, they force their building going above the ground and also make spaces below the ground. The urban spaces have a very nice human scaling. The road and the pedestrian way is well separated by greenery, and pedestrian way is covered by the overhang of the floor above. If we compare with Jakarta, it's not really that comfortable walking in the pedestrian way, with motorcycles passing through recklessly and carelessly, no coverage from rain, etc etc etc. It's really nice to have a civic center that provides information about what's the plan for the future of the country that educates and also entertain.

After that we went to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. A very nice hospital, with only 70 % of it air-conditioned and amazingly still cool. A bunker which will serve as a bunker and an isolation ward, said to be nuclear proof. It has those bunker doors with 40cm thick walls!! Very nice garden, facing the Yishun pond, with it's own roof farm where I got to taste a very sweet leaf that's used for diabetic patients as sugar substitutes. The tour around the hospital was very nice.

And that's where the foot sore begins. After a long day of walking and touring, I found my flats are not very nice for a too-long walk. The palm start to become numb and I just wish I could glide. Thankfully,  after we grab dinner we checked in at the hotel. The hotel we stayed in was super nice. After changing clothes, I switch to another pair of flats I brought and off we go explore Singapore. Well... since it's already 10pm, we just met a couple college friends who are working at Singapore and had some coffee at Clarke Quay. 

2nd day, Universal Studios. Bad timing is bad timing. It was saturday, and it was just the start of the school holiday. Great. Each rides was an hour queueing. After Madagaskar (excitement level 1), we continue to Shrek (excitement level 2), and then it was already lunch time. Dang. And then we watched the awesome Waterworld. I had been to the California Universal Studios, and this visit to waterworld was beyond fun. The guys spent almost 15 minutes splashing everyone. You're still wet even you sat on the dry zone. 

Then, we were torn between, Jurassic, The Mummy Returns, and Human-Cylon. And since it just stopped raining (and also a little bit of chicken-ny looking at the Human-Cylon rollercoaster), I decided to go on Mummy Returns. IT WAS BEYOND THE UNIVERSE AWESOME. Too bad the Transformer ride was not open for public yet, so I couldn't give it a try. Then we walk along the New York area taking PICTURES. Then it's where I met Frankensteiiiiiinnnn...... Geez, Frankenstein was really tall, and the fake hands were gigantic. I wonder if it's an asian or a caucasian inside of it.

Then, it was sore-foot-day number two. My flats were made of cloth so after the rain, it went all wet and cold. And, after getting back to the hotel, it was still wet, so I used the other flats, which just made my feet felt even worse. Thank God, there are still shoe store open!!! Bought a sandal and off we go. 

Me and my friends went to this place called Spize. I ordered Roti John Mutton Special. It's basically a very delicious sandwich with the size of my forearm. Too bad I could only ate half and the other guys couldn't finish mine.

3rd day. Before going home, we went to Merlion Park and the Marina Bay Sands skypark. The skypark was at the 57th floor, with the view of Singapore and a tremendous feel of the 57th floor hahaha. The very interesting part was, my phone sim-card got an Indonesian local signal and every messages was popping. THAT is how close Singapore and Indonesia are.

The flight home, I was already very tired. Went to stop by at the foot massaging chair for a while to boost my feet to run to the gate, it helped a bit. In plane, I already slept even when the plane was still in taxi. 

So all of the above is how I spell fun :) Still need to sort the pictures, hang on there. 

Can't wait for another trip!!!

The Power of Believe

A couple weekends ago, I went to Garuda Indonesia Travel Fair in Jakarta. My intentions were just checking the water, not really the water, but the prices on airplane tickets and tour packages, and where would I be travelling next year or the next year or the next year. Found a couple interesting packages, but still couldn't decided whether I am going just domestically or travelling abroad. 

I wanted to go to Universal Studio Singapore since I had a lot of fun at Universal Studio California. It's just a "I just had to go" feeling. But I guess, it's near. I could save up money and went there soon. Then, it all just went to become a part of plan in my mind. A desire inside.

A couple of fellow office mates got the chance to go to Singapore for the weekend joining a tour hosted by a paint company. And then came this one fine sleepy Monday, one of my office mate couldn't go because his passport was on hold from being issued due to security related matters. Long story short, luckily, I had given a copy of my passport to the company's secretary, so then I was chosen to replace him. Lucky me. Right?

Well, when I was told that I would be going, I was so excited but I got to keep it cool so that no one knows how happy I am to get the chance to went for a break, and haven't I said, one day of the tour is dedicated to a full day at Universal Studios Singapore. I went crazy happy ballistic. 

Yea. You just got to put it in your mind and heart then sync it to the universe. Fuckyea, I am going to Universal Studios. I believe it was the universe conspiring. I, believe. 

And today, I got a newsletter from the Secret. It told me, you have to desire something you want, not begging desperately for something you need. Because needing and desperation equals lacking something. When you're emitting negative energy from feeling lacking of something, how could you draw something you want closer. 

So, here is a story of the power of the Secret. Ask. Believe. Receive.

Long Story Short

Today, I had a chance to take pictures for the engagement party and ceremony of a senior, which is also a good fiend of mine, Maya, and also helping Christy while she's doing the make-up. It was so much fun, I even got to do the hair for one of the sisters of the bride-to-be! 

The engagement ceremony was nice, serene, and the decoration was superb. All kudos to Maya and her sister for doing all the flower arranging, seating arrangin, decoration and such. The clothes were also very nice. She wore a turquoise lace kebaya while her sisters wore pastel blue kebaya with vintage-cut.

The clash of turquoise, white, red, and hot pink was surprisingly very nice. The flower arrangements, the gifts from the groom's family all was nicely prepared and think through. The food was intense. They were also very delicious.

Long story short, I was so happy that Maya and Ezra is finally getting married. I saw them each as a star, with their own glow, and they still balanced each other. This is a finally! And hope this one's final and forever and ever!

PS: check out my friend Christy who's doing all the make up!

Granma doing last minute check

The chair

Maya - Kindah - Fallah - Babby

Maya

Kindah - Babby - Maya - Fallah

The families waiting for Maya

Kindah - Babby - Maya - Fallah

Maya & Ezra - Engaged!

Ezra - Maya - Yessie

Maya getting touch-up

Intan - Maya - Dedi

Maya - Me - Ezra

Life's Good

Ending a busy night, marking the start of weekend, with a glass of milk ++ while enjoying Saturday Night Live old episode. Life's good.

Why Worry

"I worry

I wonder all the time 

Why worry?

It's killing me

Forget about it"

-The All American Rejects (Why Worry)

Well, the song relates only on that part actually. But it sums it all. If worry is a misuse of imagination, really, why worry? Forget about it. Today I found out that somethings are just better to not be worried. Life goes on anyway. 

Couple days back, I worried about a simple little thing. Ended up asking for point of view and opinion on that simple little thing. Afterwards, I feel foolish for even asking for an opinion. Worry leads you on a weird place, eh? And today, I realize that what I am worried about was not worth to be worried. Relieved? Yes. Worry brings me to an anxious state. It's somehow like an adrenaline for me. It rushes me. It makes me want to do things, just to shake the bad feeling off. And hell yea, I am good at it now. I've found the outputs. 

In the end, worry just need and outputs. Like writing it right now, or go see a movie, or go window shopping, or talking to a friend (in which in my case this will only lead to another long contemplation, sometimes need to be avoided), or as easy as sleeping it off. When you're worried, just remember to remember, open your eyes, and embrace everything around, you'll see a bigger picture, or if less, you'll see a grip you could hold on to. Ah, that's a relieve.

Anyway, so excited to see Foster The People this January, they had just announced their show in town on twitter. Yay for that! To close up this post, sooth yourself by listening to Kina Grannis. My new favorite, (well, been adoring her for a while).

Next Chop

It took me two years to grow my hair from this

 to this

That's a lot of hair and a long road. And next year, I am gonna CHOP IT OFF, like her. Not sure yet when to chop it off, but she has the chic-est style and love love love the hair. Check her out, here.

Reading...

...things, gets you thinking... .

I am following a couple of blogs through Google Reader, RSS feeds. And somehow, I feel like I am being a secret admirer when I feel like "damn, I feel you, bro" and I wanted to have a conversation regarding the matter he/she discuss but I don't want them to know that I read their blogs. Weird? Weird enough for me. 

And the latest post I read was about doubt and judging people. (Click any link of blogs on the left bar, probably you'll know whose post I am talking about.)

Doubt. It might be the enemy of your future. I must agree. Based on my latest experience, when in doubt, follow your guts. If you have enough guts and bandage for those broken hopes and dreams, Go for it. If you don't, back out. If I look at it again, I was just trying to not being grey, when sometimes being "grey" is the best option. "Black" and "white" often requires sacrifice(s) and I don't want to handle anymore sacrifices, so I back out. 

When you don't have enough guts, all you have were doubts. Where do doubts leave you? Blurry places, too many surprises. Back to the beginning, if you can handle surprises, go for it. In the end, whatever paths, you just got to make the best out of it. So when in doubt, I follow my guts (well after doing a bargaining options with myself and few c&c with different people that is).

And after you came with a decision, comes the judging. Either it's good or bad (things), people will judge you the way they want to judge you anyway. So, once again, just take responsibility. One thing very important for me, keep close friends for a more honest judgement you can handle. Cause when people are saying things, your closest friends know best way to react. I am not saying my friends agree with every decision I made, but true friends supports in each and different ways. Silence, hatred, patience, and else. 

You judged and you're also judge. It's a "what goes around comes around" thing. You shouldn't judge people on their actions when they're vulnerable. I agree. Came to think of it, on the verge of their vulnerability, people often have to make decision. And often a decision you made when you're vulnerable is a life changing situation. It shaped who you are. In my case, I judge a person on a vulnerable situation, then comes doubt, then comes the decision (on a vulnerable position) and it comes back to me again. I am judged, they decide, and I judged and they decide and other people judge, and other people decide and so on and so on. It's the molding part of your life and it may be the hardest just yet. 

So life is ALREADY that complicated (well, I made it one). But it's a thrilling process, so just embrace it all and make the best of all of it. Gather your guts, or anything that's left, and make the best of everything. Everything comes around anyway.

And one last thing, when you're in repair, every once in a while it's very easy to recall every feelings on the rough path you've been through. You just have to know when to pause, think back a little, and say to yourself, like what I am doing now,  "Enough, enough". Moving on is not forgetting, it's a process of learning.

Then press play again to your life. :)

Currently Loving

Penny Loafers

Call It What You Want

I love this new music video by Foster The People

Hands Down

The last two guys, OMG. You rock this earth.

Awesome Collition

Weezer - Pumped Up Kicks (Foster The People cover)

Foster The People - Say It Isn't So (Weezer cover)

Could this go any better? Not.

This Lucky Girl

I love her to the moon around the galaxy to another galaxy bazillion times and back, and you are the coolest thing around.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY my dear Ansy Savitri!!

If you think you can imagine all the madness when a birthday surprise involves a cake and only two bottles of powder and maybe a jammed packed room full of people, well guess again. 

It was friday the 14th, and we had -sort-of- planned this surprise "party" for a couple of days. Me and a couple of friends was supposed to take the birthday girl out for a while until night and bring her back home. But then, change of plans, she had a family birthday dinner instead. So the plan was kind of unplanned. I killed time at a mall near-by, luckily some friends going to the surprise party was also killing time there. So I grabbed dinner while waiting for the others.

My friend wanted to bring the foamy-spray birthday thingy. Unfortunately she couldn't find it at the hardware store and couldn't find it anywhere else, so she bought two bottles of baby powder instead. The plan was the baby powder will be the substitute of the spray. We were just gonna pour it on Ansy.

So then, the source, a.k.a Ansy's brother said there were a couple friends surprising her at the restaurant they ate. So it bought us time to get ready at Ansy's room. I thought it was gonna be more people yesterday, but around 15 people gather at 7 square meter rooms with furnitures and stuffs it was jammed packed venue. 

After three faux "surprise", first her mom opened the door, then a couple other guest, and after changing the candles because the candles had already gone short, finally the birthday girl arrives. And as I told, it was pouring baby powder rain. Ansy was all white from the powder and she was wearing black blazer and black leggings. Instantly growing into Cruella De'ville or 87 year old grand ma with all white hair.

But I can tell she was happy and relieved aaaand she's still hangover from all the happiness now. After a round of cakes and mango syrup we take turn taking one-on-one picture with her. Somebody's under the spotlight tonight. Surely glad we made a night for her to remember. 

Remember always, you're special, Ansy. 

Hello Stranger (2)

We may be strangers to one another
But even strangers cross paths

SOMEWHERE
SOMEDAY

:)

Frisco

Got a postcard from Dira when she was in San Francisco for school project. Super cute. Love the boats and all. Reminds me of a wish I had, going sailing someday. Oh San Francisco, I will see you sooner. (crossing fingers).

A couple of new interesting things:

1. Music. Do you remember Teddy Geiger? The singer with the album Underage Thinking? I been listening to his album again since yesterday. Oh my, 2006 was a wonderful year!

2. TV Series. Earlier today, I watched Suburgatory. One funny show. Quite entertaining, I wanted to see more of it. Besides that, New Girl is also funny. Zooey invented adorkable. Oh my, is she even real? Her guy-room-mates are just perfect guy-friend. Despite the change of one key character, I still long to see more of it. And then, there is How I Met Your Mother. The tv serial that never gets me bored. This season is even bigger. As always.

Work is kinda keeping me busy these past few days, or week? Got to catch up with entertainment! Toodles!