REUNION

ITB Art Market for most people is the place to find unique stuff or delicacy and enjoy the atmosphere of Bandung, but for me that was the moment that I could find people from the past. Reunion, the word keeps coming constantly in my thought anticipating the event. I wonder if my entire friend thinks the same. Finally the day has come and as I expected, friends and foe’s coming to the event. The first thing came out of my mind was took a picture, seize the moment.

Bandung, September 10th.2006.

TEMPTATIONS

Temptation comes in many ways and I’m not talking about good food when you fast or seeing hot lady wearing spandex when you had wedding ring on your finger, actually I’m talking about calling from nature in a complicated situation. I’m talking about caught in the middle of traffic jam on a public transportation and nature calls. It’s so hard to resist and nowhere to run. That was what happened today.

And so the journey began as usual. Take a hitch and stop on a bus route from Ciledug to Blok M. The bus was empty so it was run slow, so slow even a kid with tricycle can catch up the bus so easily. While their wait for another passenger to come the traffic slowly but sure becomes more crowded with commuter and other public transport.
FYI, the distance from my home to office proximately 20 km and has to pass 3 public market and many crossings along the way.

From Ciledug to Cipulir everything’s fine; I can take all the mess on the road even the heat of traffic jam in Jakarta. Yes, after 5 years living in Jakarta, heat and pollutant becomes nature to me. The metromini passing Cidodol crossing, near Kebayoran Baru Market something quite unexpected happened. I got invisible hands twisting my belly and pushed my stomach to the bottom. I scream so loud in my head, OH GOD, THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING NOW! Not now Not in this situation when I didn’t have an escape plan or something like it. Yes, nature calls, was it something I ate yesterday?

Almost everyday after we fast, we ate fried tofu and all the kind of fried food with hot chilis and icy blend syrup for the drink. We ate like people who never found food in a million years. Like a pack of wolfs tearing up the prey, I know we shouldn’t have to do that I know we should take it slow, but in my experience, the slower you do the less food you get and that was not good for health.

This was a tragedy, a catastrophe, you named it. Caught in the middle of traffic jams over metromini and you’ve got upset stomach. Great, this was getting worst as you realize there was no toilet on metromini, have you find one? The metromini seems running slower and slower every minute, I try to hold on and get a grip on the side bar of the windows. I try to take my mind to another dimension, try to ignore the stomach but I failed. The upset stomach overwhelmed me. While I passed Kebayoran Baru Market, I saw something, a sign board, white with blue writing on it, PUBLIC TOILET. What an escape, do I have to take the chance now or I can try to hold on till I get to the office. My mind buzzing with so many thought trying hard to calculate all possible plans. Public toilet in Kebayoran Baru Market was not familiar to me, yes that was one of my justifications for not stopping there. If things get worst I could take an escape on Mayestik Market. Yes, the public toilet in Mayestik Market was familiar to me because I already knew about it. Using it for once or twice while accompany my wife and my mother in law to the market.

Finally the metromini pass Mayestik Market, I can’t take it anymore so I jumped over the bus and walked as calm as possible while my upset stomach twisting around. As I saw a glimpse of toilet, I haste my walk and rush in to the bath room. During the -you know what happen in there- , I took the liberty to send my wife a short message told her that I was stopping in Mayestik Market to calm an upset stomach.

I don’t have to tell you what happen for the rest of the journey. Everything’s going smooth. I was safely arriving at the office and start to write this story as soon as possible before it fades away.


Jakarta, September 29th.2006.

Writer wants to thanks to:

Public Toilet at Mayestik Market. Keep up the good work and please stay clean and hygienic.

STUPID QUESTION

My Manager was French and she asked me to join her meeting with her friend and her brother during lunch, so I agree. The story began when an average Indonesian met with three French nationalities and had a conversation about soccer, if you said that was a conversation. Thought, Indonesia yet never qualified for World Cup final round, so the people tend to support team from another country.

Indonesian : Hi, which team will you support for the world cup final ?
French : Stupid question, off course I’ll support French team
Indonesian : oh sure, I thought so (feel embarrassed and tried to focus on the food)

And so the World Cup Final begin and French failed to be the champion and worst they don’t even score a single goal on that competition.

Jakarta, September 28th. 2006.

-Remember Anaig Flaux-

HIT and RUN !!!

September 25th, 2006. 2nd day of Ramadhan. I saw a hit and run situation. that night, I droved home on motorbike, suddenly a young woman walked across the street and the bike in front of me hit her hard then the other bike hit them too as hard as I remember. I saw the bike try to pull over so I guess he'll take the responsibility to the accident. I pull over too, and rush to help the girl. She's hurt real bad, I called the people around the street to help her too and together we brought her to the side and treat her while others run to her home and tell the family. While we help the girl suddenly a man shouts "HEY DON'T RUNAWAY!!!" and I look to the other side of the road, the hitter was gone. I feel sorry for the girl and for the hitter, the girl was hurt and probably she asked why that happened to her but I think the worst was the hitter, that night will always be night that he hit a girl and runaway. He'll remember that for the rest of his life.

Yet, I feel sorry for my self too. If I didn't help the girl, I might chase and catch the hitter and leave the girl to other people. But in my defense, I saw the hitter try to pull over and I thought he'll responsible for what just happened.

I hope the girl only had minor injury and nothing serious, one thing for sure...I was hardly got to sleep that night remembering all the sequences one hour before.

Jakarta, September 27th. 2006