A Comment on Nita Bellissima's Blog ^_^

Hemmmm.... just another man's opinion, posted on Nita's weblog:

First.
I want to criticize the annual ceremony of Kartini Day which seem to turn merely into kebaya's festival (or even Kartini-Like Pageant). Consequently, the slogan "to inherit the spirit of woman emansipation" as a main campaign has degraded into the symbol of physically-idealistic modern women. It's now only a rhetorics in the speech. Not more. Once a year, young women pretend to be like Kartini (by her daily outfit: kebaya) but leave what was there inside her mind, long ago. Physical imitation against Intellectual affirmation. Yeah, just like earth and heaven!!
(in this case, i should thank Ayu Utami for writing "Si Parasit Lajang")

Second.
"Men Pride" is just another way to reflect on male domination against female. It's so pathetic to talk about it while women emansipation is everywhere. Don't get mixed up, boys and girls ^_^ Opening the door car for your lady, or fixing the broken lamp for your wife is not an example of "Men Pride". Instead, it's a kind of respect to women. The same things go together, using different perspectives.

Third.
Here comes the point. Instead of seeing men-women relationship in such gender-dependent perspectives, why dont we try to see it in a take-and-give fashion? For example: OK, we (men) will open the car door for you (women) and drive the car wherever you (women) like, but do you (women) mind to push the car if somehow the car broke down? wehehehe....
*jayus MODE*

WhaT ARe SoRrY FoR?

If we never learn from the past,
and couldn't stop hurting each other,
despite thousands of time of apologizing
and forgiving,
then...
WhaT ARe SoRrY FoR?

NOTE: the same version of mine at her blog.

Berlin is in Germany: a Movie by Hannes Stöhr

This is the synopsis of "Berlin is in Germany", one of German movies showed at "Pekan Film Jerman UGM" on the first day, April 19 2004. I've made this one to be reflexive and moral centered, living some details of the story behind. I am not writing a professional review, anyway... ^__^V

The gate is opening. Martin stands in front of it, then walks through, with his luggage in his left hand. He could hardly believe, after rough years in the imprisonment, that things are not the same anymore. It is not only that jail has taken his 11 years of age away, but also that the changes are so drastic that he could not cope with his preoccupied mind. A mind that has been dominated by socio-political condition in the past, when the wall still stands between long lost families, keeps the haves and the haves not in distance, and becomes the symbol of world's most devastating conflict in the 20th century.

The wall has been ruined down, Martin, when you were not out there. And you have to stay pace with the revolution. A time being where liberalism seeks a new rival. A little bit easy for Martin since he felt the real freedom. But still, the life is not easy for everyone, let alone Paul, an ex-prisoner.

The first thing to think of was how to earn money. Hohoo.... what a short memory! :D Actually, it was to help that (anonymous) guy, the one who wanted to commit suicide on top of a 10 storeys building. Paul felt very contented, seeing that despite his track record, he was still willing to help other people. And that was worth doing. He met his old friend after such heroic scene, and was offered a ride and even more, a temporary shelter to stay in while looking for a job.

After a series of getting a job, being in between-job, and getting another one, which is not far from cleaning stuffs and the likes, finally he decided to become a cab driver. You know what? It's so damn COOL!! In Germany, anytime you drive taxi, you drive a Mercedes. Right, "every taxi in Germany is Mercedes". Well, thanks to his friend. First he tried to drive one, then learnt the route, before applying to the company. A little luck, he got a probation for a few months.

Of course, it came to his mind to see his long abandoned family. A lovely wife, and a son. So he bought a good present for him. Sounds easy? Hell No!! He never met his now-11-years-old son since he was first caught in custody and then jailed down. So how could he possibly know what a "good present" mean? He didn't care anyway. With a little help from the shop assistant, he got what he thought his son would love to have: a video game.

Jreeng!! He knocked the door. A little boy opened it. Of course he didn't know who was coming. "My mother told me not to talk to strangers", he said. Good. His wife has taught their only son a good lesson. "Since your mom is not at home, I'll put this present on this door mat. You can take it if you like. It's for you", he said. That made him halfway to the home. A well-nurtured son, and later, a wife that he loved so much. Oh sorry. An ex-wife.

He found that his family has their new bread-winner. The man and his ex-wife had not been married yet, though they had shared the same house. Hmmm, just as you expect, you sniff a competition here. The son is safe though, but this guy became so jealous that he called the police and said them there's a criminal threatening their family. Then came the Police, put Paul into another custody. And soon to be released again, for his ex-wife was giving him a second chance.

Well, to calm down, and to be patient, is the big picture. It's what had put Martin into jail for the first time and (almost) the second time: high temper.

Grill Point: An Affair to Forget

synopsis by http://german.about.com/library/blfilm_grillpoint.htm

Did you ever wonder what life is like in the East German backwater town of Frankfurt an der Oder in winter? Neither did I until I saw GRILL POINT (HALBE TREPPE). Turns out, it's cold, dark, gritty, and depressing, with a few laughs now and then — just like Andreas Dresen's film about midlife crisis German style.

Halbe Treppe
Uwe and Ellen caught in the act.



The eastern Frankfurt is a small town on the Polish border, but HALBE TREPPE could have been filmed in almost any part of western civilization. Having an affair with your best friend's wife is generally considered a bad idea in most places, and Frankfurt is no exception.

Chris is a radio announcer ("Dauerpower vom Powertower") married to Katrin, his second wife. His friend Uwe puts in long hours at his snack stand (Imbißbude) named "Halbe Treppe" ("half way up the stairs"). He is neglecting his wife Ellen, who works part-time as a perfume sales clerk. Both couples, long-time friends, have fallen into a married-life routine that soon leads to an affair between Chris and Ellen.

When Hans-Peter the parakeet escapes from his cage in Uwe and Ellen's apartment, it's not hard to see the symbolism in the amusing scene of the couple searching for the family's lost pet, desperately calling out Hans-Peter's name in the cold outdoors, amid rows of bland apartment houses of the East German era.

What happens after Katrin discovers her husband Chris and best friend Ellen in her own bathtub is an interesting if somewhat predictable story. This is one of those classic "relationship" stories that German filmmakers love. But Dresen's relationship film is on another planet compared to Doris Dörrie's relationship film NAKED. Dresen's grittier, less colorful, more realistic version was more popular with German critics than Dörrie's more Hollywood-like film. That tells you something about German film tastes, but I prefer Dörrie's film over Dresen's myself.

Thank You (silent MODE)

Hei, what happen?

Hei, what really happened last night that I should thank to the following people?

flashy_jogja, anggi_1984, imponk03, poisoncatnip, dabel3, racingdynamicz, neysa_putri, bmendota, and nitsnitz@aol.com...

Thanks for yesterday. It's a beautiful night with you all...

Thanks for the e-cards, for the sincerity of your hearts, and for the lovely YM sessions :D

And to someone who make this life even more beautiful.... Thanks, my dear.

See ya....

[ Just asking myself: Are you (--> me) really sure you'll see another sunrise?.....
Thank God that today, I still do.... ]

Was the General Election a Great Success?

Regardless of how one defines the word "success", I believe that the answer is "yes, the GE is a remarkable success". I prefer seeing its substantive changes from the previous ones rather than scrutinizing the technical details. It is for the first time that Indonesian people vote not only for the existing political parties, but also for the individuals representing the constituents' and regional development's interest as well. Then on the next stage, they will vote for the president and his/her vice directly. Needless to say, those changes will bring Indonesia one step closer to the realm of democracy (well, that depends on how you define the term "democracy", anyway).

As you could expect, I don't bother myself thinking the Rp 200 Billion money spent on such a messed-up Information System. The vendor has its own karma, and I have mine. That's why all I can do is to wait-and-smile-and-see where the hell in the bank account(s) the biggest portion of the cake went into.

When Things're Getting Worse...

when things're getting worse...
you want to scream but you can't
you feel that the whole world leaves you behind
you think that hope is gone
just keep this in your mind: I've been through
the bad times before, and survive.
So? piece of cake lah! (nyam nyam...)