My Feet and Their Fav Buds

When it comes to feet, I tend to be picky with shoes. Ok... fair enough, I'm picky with everything! But I cherish quality more then quantity, and there is nothing wrong with that people!!! Especially when it has to support your whole body all day. But back to the topic... I have had some interesting shoes lately, basically because I'm picky. And I'm not saying that I have great taste... but I do like my taste and my feet love the buddies I pick for them :D

These are my feet fav buddies so far. Why you ask?


Well I'm currently working at a mine and walking is like rice to the Indonesian dish. I do it so often on rocky terrains or in the woods. Since I'm darn city girl, I have the stamina of a princess. So sometimes, I've only walked have the distance and I'm already bathing in sweat! And once that exhaustion kicks in, then the feet ain't lifting.
I tend to drag em, and that is a bad idea in such areas. Now this is where my love of these boots come in... they have STEEL CAPS, so whenever I bump my feet in to a rock or tree root, (or in the office for that matter) I don't hurt my toes. I do it all the time. I'm known for it! I wish I could wear them at home every time I get in to a quarrel with my mom which usually ends with a sore toe. God does teach fast! Hehehehe...

The brown ones look great in the field and paired with denims and a colorful shirt. And even looks HOT when I roll my jeans up. They catch up the Doc Mart look.

The yellow ones? How could you not love gummies (gumboots)? They give a great cool sensation when dipped in water, with my feet in them of course. I heart playing in water with them. I become a true kid again. No wonder I never grew up! Hahahaha...
Did I mention their cute yellow with scotchlite on em? Wuf em Wuf em!

The flaws of these shoes? They are also the cause of my trips... they're darn heavy. Hehehe... can't win em all with limited budget. If they weren't so heavy, I'll wear the gummies on any rainy floody day in Jakarta. They're awsome!



...on that note ... out of all, I think my feet looks better barefoot. I have always thought that women walking barefoot ANYWHERE is sexy. It's as seem that the women is truly connected to mother earth when they are sole less and then their natural side come out. Forget the gummies, if the streets of Jakarta were clean and tidy, I'd barefoot once in a while. So I can feel sexy for myself and for my two adorable feet.

The Jason Mraz hype...

There is this whole hype of Jason Mraz and his single "I'm Yours" lately. A few weeks ago, I've even heard it on a junior high school kid cellphone in a town at west Sumatera, a so-so remote area. Now keep your pants on cos I'm not goin to bash it up. I've declared to be a fan of this pop artis that is to play in a jazz gig in Jakarta soon. (Sorry, I consider him pop even though I truely believe he can jam)

My entry here is spesifically to talk about my fav song on this album, "We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things". I know that pop culture forces the listeners towards the single that is promoted, and there is a slight chance that the listners, especially those in Indonesia wouldn't even apreciate the whole album. But Jason Mraz is worth the listen. My fav single is "Love for a Child". For the sake of apreciation, here are the lyrics (I've bolded the parts I think are the strong parts):

"Love For A Child"

There's a picture on my kitchen wall
Looks like Jesus and his friends involved
There's a party getting started in the yard
There's a couple getting steamy in the car parked in the drive
Was I too young to see this with my eyes?

By the pool last night, apparently
The chemicals weren't mixed properly
You hit your head and then forgot your name
And then you woke up at the bottom by the drain
And now your altitude and memory's a shame

What about taking this empty cup and filling it up
With a little bit more of innocence
I haven't had enough, it's probably because when you're young
It's okay to be easily ignored
I like to believe it was all about love for a child

And when the house was left in shambles
Who was there to handle all the broken bits of glass
Was it mom who put my dad out on his ass or the other way around
Well I'm far too old to care about that now

It's kinda nice to work the floor since the divorce
I've been enjoying both my Christmases and my birthday cakes
And taking drugs and making love at far too young an age
And they never check to see my grades
What a fool I'd be to start complaining now

It was all about love...


Why love it? It's a story about a normal kid, that I imagine lives in the states. It's a typical cases of growing up. But I love how he pleeds for a little bit of innocence. For me, it's a sign that our community less treasure innocence and building hapiness. Don't get me wrong, I still think we do, but most of us have step in to a more instant view. But let's not talk about that. Not to mention that he has already grown up and he still feels a bit empty about it. But too late to complain now.
Now I don't know if this is actually his life experience, but I have to raise a glass for his story telling. No complicated words like the other songs, just a blunt story.
I also love the balad tone of it, and how its music is quite dynamic. As somebody that usually sings in the shower or just sing with a pitch control problem, I enjoy singing it sooo much. I enjoy singing it from the heart. I feel it a little bit becaues I can only assume that it's a story of many middle class Indonesian kids that never understand the love westerners show to their children. Many of us were never even hugged or kiss before the childern inisiated, or even when we grew up already. So I heart this song.

Another thing that I discovered is turns out that I'm a sucker for guys in a plain body fit T-shirt, jeans, sneakers, can sing and play the guitar with a lotta soul. It really doesn't take much to take my heart :)

Note to self:
I'm listening to Jason Mraz right now because I need to. He has a feel good music that is very positive. The energy that I need at the moment. To live high, live mighty, live righteously (Live High). JM has helped me a bit in this lag of my life.

And the angels would be sing alalala.. alalala... alalalala love this *raising hands in the air and jumping up and down like an idiot :P*

New years resolution

My new new years resolution is... Not to have a new years resolution. I've always thought that new years is just yesterday becoming today, or today becoming tomorrow so... and I don't know what a resolution is.

I did have a new years resolution. Not to have expectations. But I think since I said it as a resolution, I tend to build it up and think about it and hence having bigger expectations to everything. So I changed it today.

I've always had one anyways which never mattered in the end.

So this year... no resolutions. Just daydreams and wantings.

And I'm very happy with my resolution :)

Happy 2009 everyone!

Twas the first blast

The title meant literally. On Saturday, 13th of December 2008, I had the effort of climbing a rugged hill just to get to a great view, in seeing... my first blast (shed a tear :) )! We almost missed on taking photos but we were prepared and that is sometimes good :P. In some sense it made many markings in my life.



It's a marking of:
- I get to see somthing blow up without a metal frame arounding, meaning a TV frame.
- Geez I have a lot of work starting from now, it's finally a working mine
- This probably means I'm an environmentalist on a mine for the day. Discussing processing stuff while waiting for the blast. Tomorrow could be usual. Not necessary an evnironmentalist, but just a worker somewhere out here.
- Seems like I'm still fit enough to climb this hill, although panting desperatly for more air in lungs
- I still have my stupid gut feeling to participate this ridiculous idea to climb up a steep hill and just take a great picture while getting my back burned. Not to mention great company! An silly bule. No regrets for sure!

Bt the way, that is something else I've learned while discussing things with Daniel, my company at the moment.
I like to follow ridiculous plans. It's intregiung. If it's a little absurd: I'm all for it! Too absurd: no thanks. Not absurd: I'll do it anyways with such low effort. Not absurd ideas tend to be less fun.

Back to the blast... Am I proud of it...? A part yes, I get to see such an enourmous effort that humans have been able to come accross. And believe me, not all people can see such an incident as one might say. It's a small event, but a blast is a BLAST.
The other part, it's not such a big deal. While in once place something is blown up, somebody probably is getting a nobel prize, while another is getting free meal ticket. You know what I mean?

Twas twas... looking forward to my next twas....

Were we ever prepared... to all those remoted...

Being in a developing county is sooo interesting. You see so many things change or even stay the same. There is sooo many problems that you can't even ignore and it keeps your mind open and working... at least to just complain.
I happen to say this because I found an interesting phenomenon latetly. the major resource industries are very interesting. Especially if you are working for oil, gas, and metals. Everything is built up to very high standars. I was just talking to a very good looking paramedic today from SOS International, and he we were just talking about emails. He was also complaining on how quite today was, not much people was wondering around. Tis Friday at noon, so probably they're praying or taking naps since it's a longer break I say, while checking out his goatee.And then we parted.

It came to mind that he isn't very use to a quite life, and so do most of the people working in a mining area. Mining are usually located in remote areas. You'll be lucky if there is a lively village around that you can visit. But in our example, we are just we. Now, the people in mining usually come from cities with the fortune of going to schools. So the loud busy lifestyle is what they are accustomed to. Yet, they have to work in the quite scene. Of course they teach you all the theoretical stuff in school, but did they ever teach the lifestyle to them. Were they ever warned about the life in the jungle, in the remote island, in the middle of the ocean?

I know they were taught about the manly-hood of it all. But I know that is definitely a third layer of necessities.
For the biology major like me, we are taught through field excursions, but we never actually was prepared for living in the wild. I personally think. Camping out hell yeah, we were taught that... and that was even rawly tought by my seniors and NOT by my lecturers, and I had the sense to join in the student unit. Maybe because my school in specific was in the middle of the city anyways. Maybe it would be different for the universities in the outskirts of the city. They do have a better field records then we did. But were we city kids prepared for such a quite situation?
I know for sure, some kids that grew up the the way smaller cities (which means all city except the capital of province) can bare more than the pure city kids. I've seen some examples. But shouldn't there be some kind of precaution principle to let them know what they will face... not just business tricks up their sleves?
I ask this because I clearly can not stand people complaining about remote areas while they now this was a risk to start with. Benefits are what you bosses promise you, and not a default...

My point is, there should some hint to what we are dealing with. I probably am out of my core here, but hey I know everyone else was never prepared for this kind of work. A lot of my friends in other site are bored to death dealing with more then 3 weeks of work in the natural field. We all say that we would love to work in a natural environment, far from polution and noise, but who knew you couldbn't bare to be far from friends, family, internet, cellphones, and Kentuky Fried Chicken? Everyone has their perks, and you won't know it untill your stranded.

There's this... and there's that...

I just read a blog of a friend. Well I don't know her that well but she had accomplished something big in the past few months. So I thought I browse her out and I found her blog.
She is an extraordinary girl I have to say. She did a lot of things and she accomplished much compared to many of us. But as I read through her blog, I can't help but not being so interested in her personality. I should, shouldn't I? I should be inspired and want to know more of this figure better. But I don't. I don't find her interesting. She's extraordinary but less interesting. Does that make any sense?
I had a small chat with siskha yesteday and we spoke of how we miss meeting passionate and interesting people. I have to narrow it down because there are a lot of passionate people that aren't very interesting to me.
So I thought about who am I really interested in? I'm interested with the uninteresting, turns out. The freaks and ghouls as Smashing Pumkins would say. I'm not interested with people that make 2 million dollars a month. I'm interested with people that eat spiders for fun. Well maybe to those that make 2 million dollars a month and eat spiders for fun. The wierd and unexplainable. The ones that make your face change it's expression. From a squint to a smile or a frown or even disgust. They are the interesting people for me.
I don't have to like everyone right? Just as not everyone likes me. But I am trying to accept everyone as they are.
One of my work collegues is so harmless and yet I don't like him. He tries too hard to blend in and some how that is just a turn off in any senses. And althought I feel guitly neglecting him, I feel better because I don't torture my self. I avoid him.
So I'm realizing that I have to admit this, that not all people are interesting, and even the interesing has their uninsteresting days... the world goes on, and so... as the cafe I went to one night would say. Oh that's life.

By the way, That's Life cafe is a small new cafe I went to last night. It's on Gunawarman road, from Sudirman, take a left at the KFC on the juction. It's on the left.
Coffee - average. Ice Caramel coffee is not bad. Cappucino: froth to light, and too milky.
Ambience - slick urban but humble by wood funiture. Doens't really describe the phrase 'that's life'. Well depends, what kind of life you have. My life definitely isn't represented in this cafe. Like the lighting though.
My idea of that's life is when everything is so complicated, disordered... that you just accept. I wonder if I can make that kind of coffee shop?

When there is so many options today, especially to those that can access it, why can't we find a suitable place in the end?

When you have a problem, you seek for an answer or at least, comfort. Talking and taking time to tell the story is as hard as it is, not to mention the considerations behind it. But when my fingers would like to talk, looking for another possibility of comfort, it's not possible even the world wide web can't help. How come, such an extended world can not even help the simplest problems.

Think about it, we've learned so much and can learn so much more, yet history repeats itself.

And when I know that it's so hard to upload an entry, why do I keep on trying?