Link.

An almost proof that the fund earned from the raise of the fuel price is going to be distributed evenly and for good issues.

I LOVE my country this way. Always do, but this comforting issue makes me "like" the government more.

It's already time to think more about the low income people, and not on the uniforms the ministries wear or what make their official cars is. There are just too many children not being able to go to school nowadays, instead they need to make money for the sake of a plate of rice every day. I guess the amount they plan to give the students are very normal. Education is very expensive, alright, but it almost covers everything needed in the public schools. Good for you, children.


Taken near Tugu Pahlawan, in Surabaya.

Now about the implementation. We all know that keeping ourselves away from the corruption is the hardest thing to do in Indonesia. Be it in the government, be it in the companies, be it in the universities, be it in the fund distributions for the suffering people in the disastrous areas. There are always cases of corruption here and there.
Okay, say it's not the corruption. It might be the complicated bureaucracy or the "usual" postponed work. I read in Jawa Pos last week that the international fund from those generous countries for the tsunami's victims in Aceh could not be continued (yet) because there was no single report on the money allocation in the field. It's been 3 months and there's no news at all. All they asked is just a proof that it's wisely used for the people. If the donated things are ruined, just report that they're ruined. If the rebuilding fund has gone well, report it. Very simple. Maybe it's just too complicated there. Maybe it's just too much of a bureaucracy. But it's just very logical. As a donator, you'd like to know if your money really gets the target, right?


A Lomboknese Child

However, I still hope on a good news for this education and health fund, from the raised fuel price. My brother and sister did receive a scholarship from the government when we were in the very bottom of the monetary crisis in 1999. It was always 2 or 3 months late in receiving the help, but they did get it.

A little hope is always better than no hope at all, right? If it continues this way, a free education is not impossible anymore. :)

Go, Indonesia!
I washed my hair with Vaseline Body Lotion!!!!!
Read this.

I spent almost the whole of my childhood life learning and being encouraged by my teachers at school that I should be proud to be a citizen of a country, which produces oil. For years as well, I'd taken it for granted that there would never be a problem of oil shortage in Indonesia, as well as any other vital production like rice, woods, fabrics, etc.

Well I was wrong. In real, every now and then we always have to import something from other countries. Clothes, shoes, even soap. Why? Cause we believe that they are in better quality than those produced by our factories. Alright, some items perhaps are. But why does this also apply for rice? We PRODUCE rice. We eat rice everyday. We even have this feeling that if we have not eaten rice in a day, it means we have not really eaten. We can see rice fields everywhere in Indonesia, but in big cities, and we enjoy the sight of them. But when it comes to buying the rice of our own, why do we prefer to buy the one of Thailand imported, for example?

As in oil, it's aaalways been cheap to buy petrol in Indonesia. The government's subsided a lot to keep the oil prices low. Just lately it raised the price for the sake of a better allocation of subsidy in other fields such as education, and so many people already complained about it. It affected the high class people more, of course, for they need a big amount of petrol for their cars, but for the low and middle class people, the raise is still rather fine. Though it also affects the prices of basic needs like rice, sugar etc (which need to be transported from one city to another). But as in the fare raise on bemos or buses, or any other public transportation, it wasn't that much, seriously. Only Rp 200 raise (from Rp 1,300 to Rp 1,500). Have you already figured out the problem and the solution or do I still need to explain?

Ok, one more clue. Indonesia has ALWAYS had a problem of pollution and traffic jam. Too many private cars, too much pollution, bad traffic rules (or bad traffic users?). In the industrial area like in Rungkut Surabaya, where I live, people can spend hours on the road just to get to 2 kilometres ahead. Jakarta is even worse. I really can't imagine myself staying in the city too long, where I can get a serious brain damage just from getting stress on the daily traffic jam. I even thought walking was a faster way to get to my destination there. So do you get it now?

We have just too many cars, where one car is mostly occupied by only one person, the driver. For many middle to high class people, going by public transportation is just a very uncomfortable way to travel to their destinations (reasons: they're dirty and filthy, smelly and hot, or maybe unsafe). Not to mention the time wasted for the switch of bemos or buses of different routes. But if you think again, when more people are making the best use of public transportations, pollution and jam's problems can be surpressed (cars will be kept home unless the whole family is going out together), petrol will be more sufficiently distributed (we can't help the raise of the world's petrol's prices, right?), and MAYBE, I think almost positively, that the comfort of the passengers will be more taken care of. Why? Cause there will be more demands on the use of the bemos and buses and trains. More incomes will be contributed to the transportation section, so THEREFORE there should be an improvement on the facilities of the units. Am I right or wrong?

The only problem that should be solved, according to me, is if you dare to look into yourself, and change your point of view about public transportations. Now if you can be honest to yourself, you DO think that going by your own cars, besides giving you comfort, give you more prestige and "status" in the society, right? Do you think you can ever hop on a bemo where you need to share your seating space with so many others, stay on that thing without air conditioner, and sometimes have to "enjoy" they fishy smell from one of the buckets that one of the passengers bring with them, for the sake of conserving energy and getting less pollution on the streets?

The answer is all yours. I just wish you would agree with me a little in this, and perhaps.. just perhaps.. we can build a better city life in our country.
Last night an admirer called. He asked me to be his pacar.

My answer was: "Let's take it easy and be friends. I love your sweet attentions but.. I'm no longer believing. In men or relationship. We can do more things than common friends do as I'm quite comfortable with you, but please.. don't promise anything, as I can't promise anything to you."

I still can't believe it was Carla who said that.

Mark Adams (my friend for a thousand years from Australia) drew meeeee!!!!!!!!!!! I sent him a few pics of mine and he directly practised his drawing skill. He mailed this painting (with another pencil sketch work) and I'm gonna frame them soon! What do you think? He's the second person who ever draws me after my father. :D:D:D
Reading: Travel Book - Maluku.
Listening to: Act a Fool - Ludacris.
Learning: Dutch grammar.
Playing: The Sims.

Music

These past few weeks have been awesome. It's the Dutch cultural month sort of.. (or is it in September?) Oh whatever.. Well the Dutch course where I'm registered at, Erasmus Huis, has been hosting some cool jazz concerts these past 3 weeks. Starting with Eric Vloeimans, a trumpet player, with his two funny very very talented partners in cello and guitar 3 weekends ago; then Sun Yingdi, the winner of the 7th International Franz Liszt Piano Competition last week; and also some local language competition held last Saturday. For the latest, my lerares, Mv. Anneke, was very much "persuading" me to join two of three contests they held; Taalquiz (Language Quiz) and Zangwedstrijd (Singing Contest). I'm absolutely not the contestant material for the other contest, translation. Hehe.. Anyway.. I was not sure about both, I didn't even sign the application form that I was joining! But I came anyway, not knowing what to expect for the quiz, what it would be like, what questions would be asked, etc. etc.

Taalquiz

I met Tina there.. she was a rival in the taalquiz.. and she told me she and her group had prepared well, reading Dutch grammars and basic knowledge. SO... I went like, Oh-oh.. I'm gonna embarass myself there. I didn't prepare a thing!

Well friends, be careful with what you expect/think/say, cause it may happen. Monique, Dimas and I were absolutely the losers in the Taalquiz! Hahaha... The lowest score of all, shit.. Ok, our self-defense is: How the hell would we know if we would be asked such questions:
1. What does KLM stand for? (I read Royal Dutch Airlines in its every advertisement, shouldn't it be RDA?)
2. Who was the husband of Queen Wilhelmina? (We answered Klaus, the German prince, but of course we were wrong. He was the husband of Queen Beatrix)
3. Make the passive statement of this sentence (bla bla). And we WILL be taught passive voice grammar next week!
4. What is the capital city of North Holland? (For this one I almost answered it correct (Haarlem), but my teammate was quicker answering it... Groningen.. hehehe)
5. What does VOC stand for? (well.. Dimas was right, luckily.. Monique and I were quite surprised, but then we remembered that he owned a travel agency, no wonder he knew deep history. :P)
etc. etc.
If I knew it was about general knowledge of Holland, I would find as much info on the internet long before the quiz! :P But that was ok.. it was pretty fun. Besides, I couldn't really concentrate on the questions since one of the juries is absolutely adorable!!! I forgot his name, but I guess he's the Chinese blood, living in the Netherlands his whole life.

Zangwedstrijd

I got a CD of five Dutch songs, one of which I should choose for the singing competition, two weeks before. But lazy me always postponed to memorize the song I chose, Denk aan Mij (Think about me) by Marco Borsato. Only three days before I realised that I could not sing the song, though the mood was perfect with mine, cause the lyric is too long! I changed my mind to pick Leun op Mij (Lean on me) instead since it's shorter and pretty repetitive. STILL, I couldn't remember the lyrics!

When it was time to be on the stage and sing, I asked the juries if I could bring the text of the lyric, which was successfully denied by them (hihi.. still worth trying). So I did my best. I forgot three damn lines of the lyrics so I went like nanananana.... but I guess my vocal wasn't too bad. CAUSE THEY FORTUNATELY PICKED ME AS THE FIRST WINNER!!!!! Awwwwww!!!! Made me smile a lot at that time.. It wasn't really a fair competition, though.. I got only 5 other rivals.. hehe.. but it gave me SOMETHING anyway, so I won't start being so modest. I won a CD of compilation of Dutch songs, a T-shirt (everyone got it), a Dutch-Dutch dictionary (my first real Dutch dictionary after so long learning the language), a winner certificate signed by the Consulate and a ticket to Jakarta for the final in September.

Ok.. now.. why didn't anybody tell me that it was a SERIOUS cultural competition? I would have prepared more if I knew it was!
...
..
.
Maybe. Hihihi..


Photography

I've planned to have a photo session with my friends, Vitria, Shierly and Mariza since two weeks ago. But we just had the opportunity last Saturday. So they picked me up after the contest (it was held in the same building where Shierly works), and off we went to Shierly's apartment, after spending forever in Hero to buy some food for the weekend.

We were all tired, and me especially. So I postponed baking the brownies I promised Shierly to Sunday. Instead, we were just lazying and joking around. At 7, however, we started the photo session. Shierly and Vitria were a bit upset cause Veve was not there to do their makeup, so they had to do their best to ruin their face. Hehehe.. No, joking.. you looked fine, gals.

Here are some of the pictures:


Gorgeous Vitria.


The Adventurous Sexy Shierly. She sure looks much prettier in her early pregnancy. I think she's expecting a baby girl.

The funny thing is after all the photos and laughs (a lot of laughs, really.. Shierly was almost all the time trying to seduce Vitria, that it ruined the photos (blurry) cause either they moved, or I moved), Shierly felt it was such a waste if we didn't go clubbing after all the hard attempt on putting the makeup. So we did go with Arief, the four of us, to Desperados. The absence of Veve surely made that pregnant lady go crazy. We forbid her to drink alcohol, of course but still.. :D But since she was bribing us with the "I'll pay for everything" statement, we, the normal greedy people, agreed simultaneously. Hahaha...

On Sunday, Mariza came over with a roasted chicken (YAY, WE HAD FOOD!!!), and Emy, as well, to teach Shierly Japanese, so I got two more models (had to force Emy a bit, though. I told her I'd kick her out if she didn't want to be the model. hehe.. like I owned the apartment!!!).. After eating oh-so-much-food with the brownies as the desert, we started the photo session after midday! :D:D:D Mariza was playing hard (pretending that she changed her mind and just wanted to watch TV) and I felt like knocking her head. :P


Mariza.. She's actually not a shy person, and usually she is not shy in front of the camera. But she acted like it at that time. Bikin gemes ae. :))


Emy. She's soooooo skinny.. So I think this is the best picture to show her unique shape.

Anyone else would like to be my model? :D I'm not a pro. But I'm trying to learn.. with a borrowed camera. :P Until I can get my own someday.

Links to similar posts:
Gender by Shierly.
Am I Afraid of Men by Vitria.
What do I like most when I'm not too hungry but in need to chew something?
-- Peanuts

What do I hate most about it?
-- After I cut my nails very short, and Yendy kindly came to me with a bag of peanuts, which I can hardly open.

*sob*