How do you spend your daily commute time?

My office is an hour away from my house, by train, without any shitty trouble, and traffic jam.

I'm always alone in the train. My friend takes the earlier schedule. It's not that I can sit comfortably and peacefully on the passenger seat. The possibility to get the chance to get a seat is nearly zero. It's always full when I arrives at the station. A problem that I can never figure out how to solve it.

My office is located in Jakarta, where EVERYBODY works there. An extremely crowded city, big, yet annoying. Most workers come from some cities outside Jakarta, and one of the biggest public transportation they used is the public train, we call it here as Commuter Line. When you try to get in the train, it's like a competition. Imagine it when the concert gate is about to open and you're dying for it, trying hard  to get in the first row...there's no much difference with the circumstances I had to face in every morning, everyday. I have to compete with a bunch of people who are definitely in the same situation with me. Whether you sit or you tightly stand on the corner near the automatic door, just be grateful that you are still able to get inside the train.

But it's all about TIME.

If I may calculate the average time of me walking from my house, waiting for the train arrival, stuck inside the train, walking to the office, and vice versa, it's approximately 3 hours per day. Oh God, it's hard to believe, like I don't have a life. The point is I hate idleness, it's like killing myself slowly when I do nothing. What should I do in that depressing-hours, especially when I'm stuck inside the train? I'll tell you some alternatives.

READING

Lately, reading is always my first priority to spend my precious time inside the train. I always bring a pocket-size book inside my bag. If I forget to bring it, or the situation is not possible to get my book in my hand, I open my google Playbook. It really helps, there's a lot of free books you can get from Google Play. Reading news is also important, (theoretically speaking) I don't want to miss any up-to-date things happening around the world.

WATCHING MOVIES/TV SERIES/YOUTUBE VIDEOS

Well, I don't know if I should categorize this to the productive or the wasting one. Watching movies can potentially reduce my stress of work stuff. But one thing, try to be selective on what movies/videos you're about to watch. Because there would be many eyes peeking on your phone/gadget, try to avoid any weird content as much as you can. When that kind of scene shows up on your screen, look around you and you'll be like....

LISTENING TO FAVORITE MUSIC

This one is the most promising thing you can do to throw away the boredom. Everybody loves it.

PLAYING GAMES

I'm sure many people spending their times on this. Admit it that you like doing it too. Cool games are everywhere, just install them on your smartphone or tablet. Clear your mind and have fun!

WRITING

What I mean is writing on your blog or your personal website, if you have one, or whatever you want to write. I believe many of you out there are very talented on this subject. Sometimes you can find many inspirations when you're alone in a crowded place. I'm not good at writing tho but I've tried, it's like practicing. They said 'Practice makes perfect' (what?)

DRAWING OR EDITING

It's not a bad alternative. There's a lot of cool applications for smartphones to improve your skill on drawing or editing photos. Why don't you try it inside the train? After you finish it you can upload it your instagram or facebook or twitter. It would be fun.

CHATTING

We're living in an era where we can easily talk to anybody without meeting them face to face. Chatting is one of the ways. You can use Whatsapp, BBM, Line, KakaoTalk, or any other applications. But actually this one is a lil bit risky. Remember that you're not the only one inside the train. Don't kill yourself by publicly talking about sensitive or private stuff on your chat because there might be someone watching behind you. Creepy.

*enjoying the conversation*

Then suddenly someone behind you appears like this...

Hey I know your secret

SLEEP

Thank God I'm one of those people who has the ability to fall asleep easily even in standing position. Most times I did it unconsciously. It's good for health. I've got too tired probably so why not sleeping. Zzz.

Well, these are based on my own experiences. Let me know if you have another alternatives!

Have a good day everyone!

Happy Lunar Year xoxo

Mumpung masih muda

Muda?

Masih ngerasa muda?

Umur nggak masalah kok, kalo kata lagu:

"I wanna be forever young"

"I wanna be forever young"

Katanya "Yang muda yang berkarya". Kenyataannya selama ini saya tidak merasa demikian. Sungguh saya ingin menggunakan waktu luang saya untuk kegiatan yang bermanfaat, tapi apa mau dikata, setan ada dimana-mana. Waktu luang pun terbuang sia-sia untuk browsing nggak jelas, atau yang paling parah adalah tidur, tidur kelamaan sampai nggak bisa bedain pagi sama sore. Dalam istilah lain disebut kebo.

Beberapa hari yang lalu saya bertemu dengan seseorang berperawakan Mas2 dalam perjalanan di kereta menuju kampung halaman, kebetulan dia duduk di samping saya.

"Turun di mana mas?"

"Jogja mba, mba di mana?"

"Purwokerto mas.."

Dari situlah awal perbincangan kami di malam menjelang tahun baru itu.

Dia tujuh tahun lebih tua dari saya tapi perawakannya masih sangat muda, padahal sudah punya anak umur 3 tahun. Dia bekerja di bagian pemetaan kebun kelapa sawit di salah satu perusahaan swasta di Jakarta sejak tiga tahun yang lalu. Tiga tahun sebelumnya dia bekerja di perusahaan yang sama namun langsung bertugas di lapangan, di site perkebunan kelapa sawit di Kalimantan.

Kami saling bertukar cerita dan pengalaman. Namun sepertinya setelah mendengar cerita saya, dia terheran-heran ada makhluk kayak saya yang masih muda tapi nggak pernah kemana-mana. Apalagi setelah tahu saya terakhir pulang ke rumah adalah saat lebaran tahun 2014, sedangkan dia pulang je Jogja setiap dua minggu sekali. Dia melihat saya bak makhluk hidup hina nan durhaka >__>

Banyak nasehat yang saya dapat, entah itu benar-benar nasehat atau hanyalah nasehat sesat. Menurutnya, umur yang masih muda harus dimanfaatkan untuk mencoba banyak hal.

"Gapapa lah nakal sedikit, nanti kalo udah nikah ga bisa lho."

Tuhkan sesat haha.

Dia bercerita saat belum menikah, dia sudah melakukan banyak hal, seperti traveling DAN pergi ke tempat-tempat 'nongkrong' di Jakarta. Kebetulan dia punya seorang teman yang sering ke tempat tersebut. Demikianlah yang dia maksud dengan 'mencoba banyak hal'. Namun dia melanjutkan, "Ya sebenernya sih waktu itu saya seneng sih, tapi kesenangan yang salah"

Kenakalan yang salah. Hmm pasti kita semua pernah mengalaminya. Apalagi untuk yang masih muda, kata 'pernah' harusnya diubah menjadi 'sering'. Haha.

Dia bertanya, "Selama ini apa aja kenakalan yang pernah dilakuin?"

"Hmmmmm, nonton konser?"

"Itu termasuk nakal? Di bagian mananya???"

"Ya bagian main sampe pulang larut malemnya sih Mas hehe"

Dia hanya mengangguk-angguk (sambil tepok jidat).

"Tapi yo Mas, emangnya memanfaatkan masa muda cuma lewat traveling aja? Kan masih buanyak hal lain, tergantung selera masing-masing."

"Iyasih, cuma nanti kamu bakal ngerasain kalo udah nikah bakal susah banget ngelakuin ini itu, apalagi untuk pergi jauh. Apalagi kamu cewe, mau ngapa-ngapain harus ijin suami dulu, ya toh? Nyesel lho nanti...."

"Lho kalo saya dapat suami yang satu selera yang sama kayak saya yo bisa aja toh? Jadi ngapa-ngapainnya ntar aja bareng suami hihihi"

"Yakin bakal dapet suami yang begitu? Probabilitasnya kecil"

DHUAAR...iya juga sih, bener juga sih. Ahhh.....

Sejak itu saya mulai merasakan penyesalan dalam diri saya karena selama ini lebih sering menghabiskan waktu luang dengan kegiatan yang kurang bermanfaat dan berkesan, di kosan. Ya sebetulnya tidak separah itu sih, cuma rasanya pengalaman saya masih kurang banyak.

"Kalo yang bagian jeleknya gausah ditiru ya, nanti kamu pasti bakal merasakan penyesalan, tapi penyesalan yang menyenangkan haha"

Penyesalan yang menyenangkan........


Well, saya percaya setiap orang memiliki jalan hidup masing-masing. Setiap orang punya selera yang berbeda. Toh ada ribuan bahkan mungkin jutaan cara untuk menikmati hidup. Tapi nggak ada salahnya kita mencoba hal yang dilakukan orang lain, siapa tau ternyata kita memiliki selera yang sama.


Bagimu hidupmu, bagiku hidupku.

Tapi suatu saat hidupmu dan hidupku bisa bersatu.


#tssss #dih #lah #astaga #bye

Brief Weird Words From The Past

Nobody has invented a real time machine but a book can make you a time traveler. Yeah!

What?

Well, I just found a book of mine, a book where I wrote about many random things in it. I started writing on the book on 2010. The last time stamp written on it is Feb 22, 2012.

I just realized how I desperately tried hard to write down everything I wanted to do in my daily life, my life. There seems hundreds of wishlist I haven't made it happen. 

But there is one page that really caught my eyes. I can't believe I wrote it.

What are we living for?
As long as I'm alive, I'll do my best for everyone. I want to have many friends, I don't want any enemy. We are all living in the same world, the same planet, earth. So, why don't we just live together in peace? If so, that would be wonderful.

Selfishness. Everyone has it. But how can we control it? We are just humans. Don't let it control us, we have to control it.

Sadness and happiness. They are two very different things, just like love and hate. But we can have them at one time, isn't that cool?

Regret. Never regret anything as long as we do the right thing.

I'm a mean girl, but from the deepest of my heart I want to see everyone happy. 

I don't know what was on my mind when I wrote it. Yes I am weird person who has a bunch of random thing in mind. And worse, I'm not good at memorizing. That's why reopening old books like this can help me reminding me what I did in the past, reminding me how strange and fool I was lol.

I can't write

I am not good at writing. It’s always hard to find the idea. What am I gonna write? Is this okay? Is that okay?

Okay.

So this is what I’m thinking about now. I love reading. Books, article, or news. I always wonder how those writers and journalists are so amazing. They are genius. How to convince their readers to read their writing until the last words? How to make sure that the writing is not boring? They can describe the exact detail of a place or simply an object with very-well-structured words. They are able to bring us to their story, their world.

Isn't that cool?

When I was in school, I always hate it when my teacher asked me to write a paragraph. He taught me how to write a paragraph. There are some common steps to do it. But still, it's hardddddd.

I wish I could get an opportunity to join a workshop about writing techniques whether it's for journal, news, novel, or lyrics maybe....that would be fun.

Being An Adult.

I still can't believe that I've been a working woman for more than a year. It always feels like yesterday was my graduation day. Am I an adult now? I don't think so. Hanging out with my college friends, singing like crazy in the karaoke room, fangirling over those handsome actors from tv series are still being considered on my weekend to–do list. That thought that I am just a kid, I am just a kid....it's coming over and over again.

What is the meaning of Adult? Being mature, grown–up, fully grown–up. As many of us think, that what makes us 'look' as an adult is when we do every aspect in our life in a wise way, not a 'wasted' way. I can think wisely, I can speak wisely, I can act wisely, but I'm not certain that I can be truly a wise person. My mind is still unstable, sometimes. I don't know if this is only me but I often lost my mind, not in the literal meaning of course. It just feels like I have no idea what to do, how to settle this and that, how to get through it. I wonder if I had a mental disorder or whatever.

See? My mind is starting making nonsense.

When I was a kid, I looked at those adult people. How could they be so selfish and annoying? Yes, that's usually what  children think about adult people. I hope I'm not that kind of adult. As I grew up, somehow that so–called maturity changed my way of thinking. I turned to be a bit more logical, more rational. I want to make everything as simple as I can. Don't take it too hard. Don't make it complicated. I may be, indeed, that type of person (fyi, I am a B–type). Why should you overuse your own brain for such silly and unimportant matters? Am I right?

People around me often question me about how calm I am as a human being. They think my life is only about having fun. They said I always look 'fine'. A friend told me "You've been single for years but you look so easy about it." OF COURSE. What is wrong with being single? I'm only 22 tho, I am young. (Now I'm entertaining myself)

How do I live my life? Simple. That is why sometimes it brings me bad effect on me. For example, when I was in college, when I had to do an assignment I had never tried to do it perfectly. I mean when it's done then it's done. There were some friends who work too hard on looking for another algorithm or theory just to make their assignment look perfect. I am not perfect and I am not a perfectionist. I'm afraid that I often break my boss or my partner's expectation.

Anyway, as for me, being adult is about build my own responsibility. Whatever happened to me was made by me. I'm the one who's in charge. I'm the one who's responsible. I shouldn't blame others. I can't give it all to my parents anymore. If I regret some things, that's the risk. 

RUKI Si Anak Rajin

Well, sebenernya ini hanya repost dari tulisan saya di http://lpktepisawah.org/ruki-si-anak-rajin/ Semoga bermanfaat ^^

Minggu, 12 Oktober 2014

Sekitar satu bulan saya melewatkan 4 hari minggu tidak datang ke LPK. Saya udah kangen berat sama anak-anak, apalagi tadi pagi ada SMS dari Karin, salah satu anak didik LPK, menanyakan:

“Assalamualaikum ka luxsi mau ke LPK gak tapi les gak dari karin”

Tanpa koma tanpa titik 

Ya, seneng banget pagi-pagi dapet SMS dari bocah lucu ini. Saya tambah semangat berangkat ke LPK pagi ini. Seperti biasa saya berangkat bersama Kak Iis. Sekitar pukul 10:00 kami sampai di LPK. Perjalanan pagi ini cukup memakan waktu karena jalur Dramaga sampai Leuweungkolot macet. Apalagi daerah kampus IPB, ya sabar aja deh pokoknya..

Saat kami tiba di LPK, Kak Dede, Kak Lani, & dkk sudah mulai mengajar di dalam Lab Komputer. Beberapa anak ada yang sedang bermain bercanda di saung. Namun yang jadi perhatian saya adalah seorang bocah laki-laki di luar Lab Komputer, sepertinya dia sedang mengintip keadaan di dalam. Wajah anak itu tidak familiar, mungkin saya baru pernah melihat dia. Ketika saya dekati, dia kelihatan malu-malu (cute banget deh hehe). Kemudian saya ajak mengobrol:

“Hey, kenapa kamu di luar?”

*senyum malu-malu*

“Nama kamu siapa? Kok kamu ga masuk?”

“Ruki kak…” (saya sempat salah mengira namanya Luki, bukan Ruki)

“Kamu dari SD mana?”

“SD Cibadak kak..”

Saya sempat meninggalkan dia sebentar ke sekumpulan bocah yang sedang bermain di saung. Seperti biasa, mereka heboh kalo ada kakak-kakak yang dateng haha.

Saat kembali ke Lab Komputer, ternyata Ruki sudah berada di dalam. Kak Lani meminta saya untuk mengajari Ruki matematika: penjumlahan dan pengurangan. Dia memang baru menginjak kelas 2 SD, materi pelajarannya masih yang simpel dan sederhana. Kalau saya perhatikan, Ruki ini pintar dalam hitung menghitung. Dia cukup cepat dalam menjawab soal penjumlahan. Saya membuat beberapa soal penjumlahan dan pengurangan. Untuk pengurangan, dia masih agak kesulitan karena ternyata memang belum diajarkan di sekolah hehe. Tapi setelah saya beri tahu metode perhitungannya, dia cukup mengerti. Semoga. Hehe.

Karena sudah cukup banyak soal yang saya berikan, kami memutuskan untuk mengakhiri latihan soal. Saya ajak dia mengobrol, saya menanyakan tentang keluarga dan kegiatan dia sehari-hari.

“Sekolah Ruki jauh nggak dari rumah?”

“Enggak kak, deket.”

“Berangkat sendiri atau dianter?”

“Sendiri kak.”

“Tetangga Ruki nggak ada yang barengan sekolahnya?”

“Nggak ada.”

“Hmmm…biasanya pulang sekolah jam berapa?”

“Jam setengah dua belas kak”

“Kamu kalo abis pulang sekolah ngapain?”

“Hm makan siang sama ngerjain PR dulu kak.” (Masya Allah, beda banget sama jaman saya SD…)

“Terus ngapain lagi?”

“Belajar…” (Good!)

“Bapaknya Ruki kerja dimana?”

“Dagang kak, ehm dagang mie ayam”

“Oh dangang mie ayam, di dalem rumah gitu?”

“Enggak kak, keliling pake gerobak”

“Oh… wah asik dong bisa makan mie ayam tiap hari hehe, kamu suka kan mie ayam nya?”

“Iya suka kak”

“Kalo Ibu kerja dimana?”

“Keliling nagihin kredit kak..”

“Waah kredit apaan?”

“Lemari kak..”

“Kamu punya adik?”

“Punya kak”

“Cewe atau cowo? Umurnya berapa?”

“Cewe kak, umurnya 1,5 tahun..”

“Bapak Ruki jualannya jam berapa?”

“Nyiapinnya dari jam 8 pagi, jam setengah 2 mulai keliling.”

“Biasanya keliling kemana aja? Terus pulangnya jam berapa?”

“Kadang ke pasar malem.. Pulangnya malem kak”

“Kalo Ibu Ruki mulai jam berapa kelilingnya?”

“Jam 3 kak..”

“Sampai jam berapa?”

“Jam 5 udah pulang kak”

“Lho, kalo Bapak sama Ibu lagi keliling, adeknya Ruki siapa yang njagain?”

“Biasanya diajakin Ibu keliling juga kak”

“Oh…kalo sore-sore kamu ngapain?”

“Ngaji kak”

“Sampe jam berapa?”

“Jam 8 kak”

“Abis sholat isya ya? Pulang ngaji kamu ngapain?”

“Makan malem. Abis itu tidur..”

“Kamu nggak nonton tv?”

“Enggak kak”

Masya Allah…. di jaman serba teknologi canggih kayak sekarang, masih ada anak rajin seperti Ruki. Bahkan dulu saya pun nggak serajin dia hehe. Dari obrolan (yang sepertinya lebih mirip wawancara :p) saya bersama Ruki, saya belajar beberapa hal. Kesederhanaan, ketekunan, dan pentingnya bersyukur. Semoga Ruki menjadi anak yang pintar, soleh, berbakti kepada orang tua, dan dapat menggapai cita-citanya. Amiiin…

Tak lama kemudian, ayah Ruki datang menjemput. Satu hal, terlihat dari raut wajah beliau bahwa ia ingin anaknya dapat mendapatkan pendidikan yang layak. Siapa sih orang tua yang tidak mau anaknya menjadi lebih baik dari mereka? Tidak ada.

Alhamdulillah LPK Tepi Sawah dapat menyediakan fasilitas dan sarana pendidikan yang mungkin belum bisa didapatkan di rumah atau sekolah anak-anak Desa Cikonjen, Cipakel, Bubulak, Cibadak, dan sekitarnya. Semoga lebih bermanfaat ke depannya 

About FOLK music.

Have you ever heard of Bod Dylan? He was one of the most legendary folk artists. If you didn't know him, well, where on earth do you live? Honestly, I didn't use to listen to folk music. When I was in elementary grades, I listened to Westlife, everyday. Every morning before I went to school I (sometimes my dad) played their songs using our VCD player. Oldie, yes. Then in junior high school I started to listen to pop and rock music. Busted, Simple Plan, Linkin Park, Evanescence. But recently, I love to listen to folk music, both old and modern folk music. My favorite is Bob Dylan, of course, and The Civil Wars. The Civil Wars was the best duo I've ever known. Unfortunately they broke up already.

Folk music is often called as traditional music. Many articles said that folk  music came from 'folk' who were mostly farmers and workers living in villages or country sides. Music is a way to express their thoughts, like freedom of speech. That is why most folk songs telling about everyday's life, protests, social & politics, love, whatever they want to tell the world. For what I know, the lyrics of folk songs are usually simple and uncomplicated. And one thing I want to point it out here, folk music doesn't require such expensive instruments, like piano or violin. You can just use an old guitar, or just clapping your hands, or you can just simply sing! It's up to you, make your own style!

So what's the difference between folk and country music? Country is a style of folk music. And it's more relatable to pop music. That's the reason why country music is more 'familiar' than folk music. And country music is often related to Cowboy, yihaaa!

Woodie Guthrie

Woodie Guthrie is often mentioned as one of the main contributors to the revival of folk music. He was an American folk musician. His music works includes political, traditional, and children songs. He's one of Bob Dylan's major influence. His most popular song is "This Land is Your Land". 

Lead Belly

Another American folk musician to be considered as the man behind folk music expansion is Lead Belly. His true name was Huddie William Leadbetter. He's older than Woodie Guthrie. He was well known for his strong vocals and his twelve–strings guitar. He wrote songs not only about women, racism, everyday's life, but also about people such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Adolf Hitler, and Jean Harlow.

Bob Dylan

And last, everyone knows Bob Dylan. Even Steve Jobs was a fan of him. You must have known some of his songs such as "Like A Rolling Stone" or "Tangled Up in Blue" or "Knonckin' On Heaven's Door". His lyrics have incorporated a variety of political, social, philosophical, and literary influences. He's now 73 and still producing music. He's even ready for American tour this fall with his band.

There has been many improvements of folk music. It's like combining original folk music with another genres such as pop, blues, rock. Music is always an experiment, indeed. You can check out many modern folk songs, especially American folk songs that seem more various than in another countries. If you have no idea, open your Spotify. It is really recommended. They provide 'Browse' menu that helps you to find songs based on their classification and it will directs you to their provided–playlists. Go go go!

Source

• Bob Dylan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Dylan
• Folk Music http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folk_music
• Lead Belly http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_Belly
• The History of American Folk Music  http://folkmusic.about.com/od/historyoffolk/a/Folk_History.htm
• The History of Folk Music http://www.music-folk.com/the-history-of-folk-music/
• Woodie Guthrie http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woody_Guthrie

"When you have things in your mind but you can't tell anyone, just write it on your blog."
(Quotes of the lazy day.)


One day I said "We always have to stay positive, throw away the negatives."
Now I'm telling myself  "How the hell am I supposed to do that?"

Talking is always much easier than doing.


I've been sick since three days ago. It was only a little headache actually but it has been extended by flu and cough. I always hate to go to the doctor because I think I just need more rest. It's like yeah I'm not that weak I can handle it, my body can handle it, I hope so.

Ten minutes ago, my brain just gave me a really scary thought "What if I have a cancer?"
It's like.........WHAT?!?
Hey brain, just because of the hair loss it doesn't mean that I have a cancer!


It really bothers me.

One of the best Sundays I've ever had

No, it's not a late post. It just happened last week, August 24th exactly. That was one of my best days ever. Why? Because, finally, I had a chance to see Ellie Goulding's live performance!

Ellie Goulding.......Ellie oh Ellie... Really, I don't know what I have to say about this young lady, this great singer, this great songwriter, she's truly an amazing woman. I knew her when 'I Need Your Love' was released, her single featuring Calvin Harris. At that time, honestly, I thought "This song is so weird.....really weird." I deleted that song immediately. And as we all know, karma does exist. This year, I started to love her songs. Since I heard "Burn", I began to listen to all of her albums, and man she's brilliant.

Then BOOM!! A promotor announced that there would be a concert, but it's more like a music festival I think. They call it We The Fest, #WTF14. There would be some artists from around the world, including local artists, from my country, Indonesia. I was so fckn excited when Ellie was announced to be on of the lineup. Maaaan, it was like WOW I just started to love her and suddenly she was going to come to my country. It came to my thought "I HAVE TO GO NO MATTER WHAT".

It's not always as easy as I thought. I mean, yeah, you know, in a music festival. It would be a lil bit difficult to focus on one performer. There were a bunch of another artists, such as Banks, Havana Brown, Timeflies, Miami Horror, RAC, Lala, Sore, etc. To be honest, I didn't have any idea who they are. I only knew Ellie Goulding, only her. That made me change my mind, I thought I wouldn't make it. I didn't have anyone to go there together indeed.. So, yeah, I gave up.

A week before the concert, my officemate asked me if I would go to #WTF14 or not. And at the moment, I was like "YES SURE YOU WANNA GO TOO, DONT YOU??". Then I bought the ticket. Lucky me, I got a ticket from someone who had a leftover and she sold it in a cheaper price. Thank God.
We couldn't wait till the weekend come. I barely could get my self focused on my works haha.

The weekend finally came. There were two stages, Crown Chella & Banana Palooza. It sounds familiar, isn't it? It's like coachella and lollapalooza haha. I and my friend chose to stay at Crown Chella stage because it was full of DJ set at another stage. We don't really like DJ set. So, we arrived there and saw a first performance by Maliq N D'Essentials, a cool band from my country. But we were bloody hungry at the moment so we went to the food town, they called it the food town. After we finished the foods we got back to the crowds when Timeflies were doing their performance. They're great, I like the vocalist, he was really get along with the audiences. He's very interactive.

After Timeflies, Miami Horror came up to the stage. Hellyeah, we were waiting for them, we wanted to see them so badly. Their music sounds like Vampire Weekend, Two Door Cinema Clubs, and MGMT sometimes. Yeah, sort of that. It was a lil bit disappointing because they didn't talk much. BUT the vocalist was really really crazy haha. He's really good at dancing, with his own crazy style! And one more, the keyboardist!!!!! He was jumping all the time while he's playing the instrument....for the whole performances. It was like everyone talked about seeing him weirdly lol.

We decided to skip Azelia Banks's performance because we didn't really know her. We were just hanging around, get some drinks, sitting on the grass........and the best part was Bungee Trampoline!! We pushed our nerves to try. That was really really amazing. However, it was pretty hard to move my legs in order to roll my body when I reach the top. There was a foreign man who could roll his body seven or eight times a row. That's crazy.

Banks came up after Azelia Banks. I knew her but not really listen to her songs. Her voice sounds unique. Her music style is somehow dark and gloomy. But she was really good on stage. I thought I love her live performance more than her recorded songs. She's great. And her voice when she's talking is very cute, really different when she's singing. We watched her from far, sitting and laying on the grass..enjoying her on stage.

It was almost 11 PM when Ellie Goulding came up. We used to wait her for like an hour since Banks got down from the stage. The preparation was bloodyhellyeah.
My body was like trembling, with excitement, when she showed up on stage. First song was 'Starry Eyed'. I was really happy to see her, she looked gorgeous!! Such a goddess. She perfectly did it. I was at a loss for words. Everyone was jumping around and singing along.

I didn't know that she would sing my favorite song 'This Love Will be Your Downfall' OMG I was almost crying I swear (well it's too much haha). My favourite part was when she did an acoustic performance of 'Guns and Horses', that was perfect! How could she do that eh????

She didn't talk that much actually. But there was a funny part when she said 'OMG guys you are so quiet, I really don't know what to say' haha. Yeah indeed, it was not really as loud as a concert should be. All people right there were like just enjoying her songs, clapping their hands, swaying their body. I shout her name just a few times, I couldn't do it because people around me were.......quiet. But I love that kind of atmosphere, I could focus on the music, the songs, and her beautiful voice.

Encore was always the best part in every concert, it should be. The last three songs were 'Anything Could Happen', 'Lights', and of course 'Burn'. Everyone jumped and sang along and raised their hands in the air. I felt like I was in the other world haha...cool. At the moment, I thought I would've regretted it seriously if I hadn't gone there. Man, it was the best concert I ever had.

Ellie you are great, you are amazing, everybody loves you!

Menikmati Masa Tua

Wait, it's not about me, of course. Saya hanya ingin berbagi cerita tentang seorang bapak yang saya temui di bus saat perjalanan saya ke Jakarta dua minggu yang lalu. Beliau duduk di samping saya. Karena kondisi arus balik yang sangat padat hingga macet berjam jam, kami sempat mengobrol cukup banyak.

Beliau asli dari Purbalingga, namun sudah menetap di Bekasi sejak lebih dari 30 tahun yang lalu. Beliau merantau demi mendapat pekerjaan di Jakarta. Kalem, baik, ramah, itulah kesan yang saya dapat dari sosok beliau.

Sebelumnya si bapak bekerja di salah satu perusahaan soft drink ternama di Jakarta. Beliau mengatakan, "Saya ambil pensiun lebih cepat Mbak." Jabatan terakhir yang dipegang oleh beliau adalah supervisor di bagian Sales & Marketing.

Awalnya beliau bekerja sebagai helper. Helper adalah asisten dari salesman. Beliau cukup lama bekerja pada posisi tersebut. Tugas helper adalah membantu salesman untuk mengangkut atau mengeluarkan rak rak botol minuman dari atau ke mobil box pengangkut barang. Ya intinya mah bantu bantu apa aja, namanya juga helper hehe. Tapi jangan salah, tes untuk menjadi helper ternyata tidak mudah karena helper harus memiliki ketahanan fisik yang kuat.

Setelah beberapa tahun bertugas sebagai helper, beliau naik jabatan menjadi salesman. Sebenarnya tugas salesman  tidak lebih ringan dari helper. Untuk mengirim produk ke toko toko atau warung, salesman dan helper pergi keliling menggunakan mobil box atau pick up. Nah, tugas salesman adalah menyetir, menawarkan produk, mencatat, ya pokoknya semua mua dia yang urus. Sehingga salah satu persyaratan menjadi salesman adalah mempunyai SIM A.

Saat diangkat menjadi supervisor, beliau membawahi empat orang salesman. Katanya jadi supervisor itu ribet, apalagi kalau harus menghadapi anak buah yang "bandel".

Dari awal merantau ke Jakarta, beliau tidak pernah keluar dari perusahaan tersebut. Bayangkan berapa lama beliau bertahan, dari seorang helper sampai menjadi seorang supervisor.

"Tadinya saya sudah mau diangkat jadi manager tapi saya tolak, mending pensiun saja...."

NAH. Saya sempat kaget dan heran.

"Lho Pak, bukannya itu kesempatan besar? Kenapa tidak diambil?"

"Tanggung jawabnya besar Mbak, jadi supervisor aja saya udah pusing, repot, kewalahan..."

Saya mencoba berpikir positif, mungkin beliau memang ingin menikmati masa tuanya mengingat usianya yang sudah tidak muda.

"Sekarang saya jadi sopir pribadi Mbak, nganterin anak sekolah. Sebelumnya, setelah pensiun, saya pernah nyoba jadi sopir taksi."

NAH. Saya sontak kaget lagi. Bapak ini sudah pensiun, sudah dapat pesangon yang jumlahnya lumayan juga, kok masih nyari kerja??

"Walaupun sudah tua, saya nggak bisa diem Mbak orangnya. Kalo nggak ngapa-ngapain malah jadi capek, ntar malah jadi penyakit... Ya Alhamdulillah sekarang kerjanya juga nyantai, rumah majikan saya deket banget sama rumah."

Subhanallah.. Beliau yang sudah usia lanjut saja masih semangat bekerja, saya yang masih muda gini kadang masih suka males-malesan hehehe.

Begitulah cara beliau menikmati masa tuanya, menjadi sopir pribadi. Anaknya yang terakhir masih berada di bangku SMA kelas 3. Beliau mengatakan bahwa anak tersebut sangat pandai, rangking 1 di kelas. Biaya sekolahnya ditutup dengan dana beasiswa, beliau tidak perlu pusing-pusing memikirkan biaya sekolah. Terlihat wajah berseri beliau, pasti beliau sangat bangga dengan anaknya. Beliau berharap kelak anaknya mendapatkan beasiswa untuk mengambil pendidikan di perguruan tinggi. 

Selama mengobrol dengan beliau, saya belajar banyak hal. Hidup itu nggak usah dibikin susah, asal kita menikmatinya dengan ikhlas, mengerjakan sesuatu yang memang kita senangi, tapi yang paling penting harus tetap bertanggung jawab pada diri sendiri, orang tua, keluarga, teman, dan orang-orang sekitar. Materi atau uang bukanlah tolak ukur kebahagiaan yang bisa kita dapatkan, melainkan bagaimana kita menjalani hidup dengan cara yang kita senangi.

Pengen kaya? Boleh.

Hidup nyaman dan bahagia? Harus!

Just do what you love and enjoy the life ♥