EnjoyHelix

Work It, Dawg!

2009-06-17T06:27:00.000-07:00

Go, little dog, go! And after that, a couple of sit-ups would do the trick. How could anyone hate dogs. hmm?

BlackBerry? More Like BleaughBerry!

2009-06-07T03:43:00.000-07:00

Ah yes... my first post in... I don't know how long. Down to business, I'm sick and tired of seeing BlackBerries everywhere! I can understand if you're the big kahuna or even just an ordinary employee in some major company whom everybody is looking for 24/7. But, high schoolers and college students??? No fucking way! What the hell is wrong with their parents? They don't use it for anything else other than chatting / updating their status on Facebook. That's really pathetic. Ah yes, status. I despise people who buys stuff just to swagger their status. Buying BlackBerries to show the world that you're higher than the crowd just shows that you're compensating for something. People can be so ludicrous sometimes. All I'm saying is people should not buy such an expensive device if they aren't going to OR able to use it to its full potential. Status seekers and people who doesn't understand the value of money (as in its not their own so fuck it!). Those are the kinds of BlackBerry users that I look down on.

Even Pets Have More Self-Control Than You and Me

2009-01-04T09:25:00.000-08:00

These pets show the world that their self-control are on a whole different level. Now, how do we teach this to humans?

The iPhone Nano

2008-12-30T10:04:00.000-08:00

The new iPhone Nano. Multi-touch, accelerometer, bluetooth, wi-fi, but no camera. Just a wee bit larger than the latest iPod Nano. Talk time: 4 hours on 3G, 10 hours on 2G. Stand by time: up to 240 hours. Internet use: 4 hours on 3G, 5 hours on wi-fi. Video playback: up to 6 hours. Music playback: up to 24 hours. , Just $350 for the 8 GB model and $450 for the 16 GB model. Why is it more expensive than Apple's ubiquitous iPhone? Cos it's unlocked, that's why!!!

Ah, if only all that were true. But if Steve Jobs turns out to be a genie of some sort, this concept would be my first wish (followed by the iCar and the iPlane). FYI, I used Google Sketchup, V-Ray, and Photoshop. Comments are welcomed.

Welcome to the Land of Copycats

2008-12-07T10:47:00.000-08:00

Let's say that there's this hypothetical country where most of the people are always in need of entertainment however shallow or unoriginal it may be. Let's further assume that you got hold of a script, a leading man, and several supporting actresses. You also got a budget that's just enough for everything. So you went on to shoot the movie and finished after two weeks of shooting ('cos if it takes longer than that, you'd have to cut back on the editing guys, thus postponing your long awaited vacation to Europe).

Now all you need is a poster to promote the movie. You've thought of hiring some moderately creative graphic designers, but nah, those guys are always overrated. Thanks to the undemanding and lenient nature of the hypothetical people, that really isn't a big deal. Using all of your wits and creativity, you managed to Google a perfect Hollywood movie poster that's not that widely used. So you decided to ~~steal~~ inspire yourself and ~~copy~~ adopt it as your own. You don't really feel bad about it, as you've done this before for as long as you can remember. 'Cos in this accommodating hypothetical society, you're allowed to do it as long as you want.

Touchstone Pictures, give 'em hell!

Here's Another Reason Why You Should Love Dogs

2008-11-12T09:25:00.000-08:00

Thanks so much, TokyoMango for reminding everyone why they should love dogs.

Ever wonder what Richard Gere has been up to? I don't, but I am looking forward to seeing his newest film. It's about Hachiko, the famous Akita dog whose spirit resides in Shibuya Station since the 1930s. He was a smart, loyal doggie who lost his owner at the age of 2. The owner died of a heart attack while he was at work, so the dog never knew of his death. So every day for the rest of his life, he sat in front of Shibuya Station in the late afternoon to early evening, waiting for the owner's return. Other commuters soon caught on to what was happening and started feeding the dog and paying him lots of attention.

Hachiko died of heartworm at the age 11 and the ward erected a statue in his honor. Now it's the most popular meeting spot in Tokyo.

After Hachiko died, they found a whole bunch of yakitori sticks inside his tummy. His stuffed body is now on display at a museum in Ueno.

Marley and Me Goes to the Big Screen

2008-11-09T10:25:00.000-08:00

I read the book earlier this year. It's simple and effortless to read (think murakami... now invert it). But that simplicity is also the book's strong point. Then again, no books about dogs ever require a great deal of literary prowess. I liked the book though, partly I guess because I'm a dog lover. So when I saw this trailer, I was beaming. There's a great quote in the movie that sums up why I like dogs: "A dog doesn't care if you're rich or poor, give him your heart, and he'll give you his." Plain simple, unlike humans.

Superhero!

2008-11-06T08:18:00.000-08:00

Someone somewhere probably have posted this before, but just humor me. What do you think is the most insignificant imaginary superhero ever? I'm thinking... Automotive Body Repairman. He'd be able to repair dents on your car, but he needs to recharge his powers for a week after each use. Plus he can't use it for material gains. Do tell me what you have in mind. :)

Me Likey...

2008-09-17T01:29:00.000-07:00

Want Oney... .

Infant Propaganda

2008-06-23T09:26:00.000-07:00

Can you imagine being in a car with your kids and all they listen to are those repulsive bands you profusely hate and every time you try to change it they throw a manifold of tantrums at you? Wouldn't it be great if your kids share your music genre? Well now you can with a little help of some music CDs and infant propaganda.

"Rockabye Baby!" are lullaby covers of rock bands and popular artists. Among those adapted are Coldplay, U2, the Beatles, Radiohead and Greenday. Now all you have to do is play this every night and they'll surely be... pursuaded to follow in your footsteps. Nothing like brainwashing your children before society does. (***it's for their own good!***)

Thanks to Ms. Madison for the tip.

$199!

2008-06-11T08:22:00.000-07:00

I'm having a hard time deciding to be ecstatic or depressed. I should be ecstatic cos $199 is more than reasonable. It's obiously cheaper than most phones on the market but offers a heck of a lot more (I wonder how efficient should a company be to be able to deliver such an advanced technology for what seems to be a fraction of it's total cost). On the other hand, the price of my Touch should have a nosedive right abooouuut.... now.

Only a couple more years till Apple rules the world... and I will be their humble servant. So should you.

The Soap Opera Special - Season 1

2008-06-03T08:19:00.000-07:00

1 The apocalyptic news.
Conveyed in a 'by the way' tone sugar coated with an innocent smile that has been clinging on every single hopeful imagination for the past year or so.

2 The crack.
Ever so faint, yet agonizingly loud at the same time. You try to listen to it, but you're listening to silence. You know its fucking real, though. Every fucking crack on your soul.

3 The spontaneous combustion.
You start feeling warm and nothing else. That cold glass you're holding, not a single chill. Then a surge of heat comes in. You can feel it inside. You want it to go away. You beg it to go away. Fat chance, asshole. The heat is now your new best friend, better get used to it.

4 The rubbing. (As in rubbing it in...)
The news, the crack, the heat, those are just hors d'oeuvres, my friend. Then the stories sweeps in... narrated, once again with the brilliantly concealed iniquitous smile. Dear God, those stories. A tale worthy of praises and awards ('mesmerizing and gripping' - The Times). No details left unsaid. Every single word slices and dices their way through your soul (or what's left of it). You wonder how could a person be so oblivious.

5 The endorsement.
Here comes the fun part. You are in f-u-c-k-i-n-g p-a-i-n but guess what, you still manage to give her your best smile. You give your approval. You endorse her newfound Romeo. Even after you arrived home later that night, the "I'm happy as long as you're happy" bullshit slips out your mouth, leaving a painful stabbing feeling in your gut. The classic cliffhanger for a soap opera, the nastiest sensation crafted by God.

To think that you came all the way down there with a bad case of the flu, a bag full of hopes and a fully functioning heart. Yes, Ms. Morissette, it is Ironic. Yes Mr. Boyd, it is a Sick Sad Little World. Cheers, Aristotle. May you rest in peace. Cue 'What a Wonderful World' and fade out.

Note:
Some of you will understand, some of you won't. If you don't understand, be grateful. If you do, hang in there. Somebody someday will stop all this nonsense.

Remember Rocketeer?

2008-05-15T03:59:00.000-07:00

I shit you not!

Quote of the Year

2008-05-05T09:42:00.000-07:00

"In my opinion, the best thing you can do is find a person who loves you for exactly what you are. Good mood, bad mood, ugly, pretty, handsome, what have you, the right person will still think the sun shines out your ass. That's the kind of person that's worth sticking with."

Mac MacGuff

The Good Old Days

2008-04-13T09:27:00.000-07:00

Remember back then when we were young? :D

The All New iPhone

2008-04-09T08:52:00.001-07:00

http://macbigot.com/media/iPhoneWallpaper1024x768.jpg

The Perfect Soundtrack For...

2008-03-28T07:59:00.000-07:00

Acoustic guitars, gentle rythms, sensible drum beats, the occasional piano notes and an everyday voice: the perfect recipe for an easy listening album. Jack Johnson's style is so undemanding that you'd be listening through his newest album without a single touch of hesitation. 'Sleep Through the Static' is the perfect soundtrack for:
1. Sunday driving.
2. After-hours in the office waiting for the rain to stop, cursing silently on your God given lack of skill to multi-task which naturally makes you extremely focused on one job while at the same time disregarding everything else including bringing your raincoat to work since you're using the friggin motorcycle that day.
3. The long and winding drive home after going on a what-you-hoped-was-a date date with the perfect illustration of God's creation you've secretly fallen in love with for a long time just to be ditched after an hour of apparently-it-wasn't-a-fucking-date date and all the while vowing to yourself not fall down that same old well again though you desperately wished every single call coming out of your cellphone to be from her (while most of it was from work, why God, why!?).
4. Writing down a suspiciously detailed blog entry (mixed with 'Continuum', 'Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings', and 'Parachutes').

Details are meant to be impartial to any of the writer's or his colleagues' past experience.

... or are they?

Nano and Touch for Under 100 Bucks

2008-03-23T08:12:00.000-07:00

Do you know that you can buy a Nano in Indonesia for under 30 bucks and a Touch for under 100 bucks? You really can, I swear to God! The only problem is they're assembled in China, designed by ~~Apple in California~~ some surreptitious Chinese company. If plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery, then these guys have no problem flaunting their honesty.

The alleged 2nd and 3rd generation Chinese Nano. Don't expect the scroll wheel to work like the real thing. The less you pay, the less you get. But you gotta hand it to them, the similarity is abundant.

Now for the Touch, what they fail in software and hardware they make up yet again in appearance. The resemblance is uncanny. China, the Xerox center of the world. Mix it up with Indonesia, the authentic land of the free, and you'll see these products in shopping malls. Side by side with their Chinese-Californian counterparts.

The Time (Or Lack Thereof) of Our Lives

2008-03-18T09:27:00.000-07:00

My first blog in weeks. Time has definitely become a luxury lately. Wake up, go to work, sleep, repeat. The vicious cycle of the market research work force (and many other out there, I'm sure). Life outside the office is close to non-existent. The same goes for the pay. Why am I here, I wonder from time to time. Beats the hell out of me. All I know is that this particular job is a natural predator for social lives and relationships (even for the ones you're not in yet and hope to be in). I don't hate my job. But I detest the time demands.

How to Fix a Scratched CD Using Toothpaste

2008-02-20T23:27:00.000-08:00

Great stuff!

Covered in Rain

2008-02-16T10:16:00.000-08:00

This is one of the very few songs that encourages me to sit back, close my eyes and listen, really listen to every rhythm, every note and every sound.

A Day To Remember

2008-02-13T09:20:00.001-08:00

"In a better world I would have kissed her over the ice trays and that would have been the end of all our troubles. But you know exactly what kind of world we live in. It ain't no fucking Middle-earth. I just nodded my head, said, See you around, ____, and drove home."

Yunior
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

happy validation day everybody!

Move Over KITT!!!

2008-02-12T07:28:00.000-08:00

LEDs are the new shades.

They're fun to watch and conspicuous.

Colorful and somewhat magnetic.

Not to mention energy efficient and durable.

And rumor has it that they serve well as a fashion statement too... .

And for you geeks out there, I bet my savings that you'd love to have a wicked cool Knight Rider-esque scanner lights on your belt buckle. Guaranteed to have the ladies running... away.

Get yours today at the ScrollingBuckle.com or at your local Made in China doohickey slash rip-off store.

Har har har!

2008-02-10T06:31:00.000-08:00

Think Adidas, Think Batik

2008-01-30T08:18:00.000-08:00

Just when you thought tradition can't be cool, the good people at Adidas shows you how it's properly done. The newest addition to their ever growing Materials of the World project uses intricate designs inspired by none other than INDONESIAN Batik. Batik is actually a method of dying exquisite decorative features on fabrics. It's a well known tradition handed down over generations that unfortunately has been subjected to lots of imitation and copyright disputes by neighboring countries. (Get your own tradition, pirates!)

History aside, three products will be introduced: Metro Attitude Hi sneakers, track jacket, and cap. You can find out more about them here.

Facts: Indonesians mostly use Batik to formal parties, semi-formal parties, especially weddings. They are also used as government official and school uniforms. Batik was introduced to the world by Soeharto in a UN conference back in the 70s.

Thanks to Hamdun for sharing the info.

Go Ahead, Drool

2008-01-17T09:24:00.000-08:00

Good God! Now how do you expect me to sleep at night, Steve Jobs!!! This is truly the ultimate wet dream for technology enthusiasts. Perhaps a touch screen would be even better, but this would suffice... for now.

EnjoyHelix is now receiving donations for the foundation of "Where My Air At?". Donors should contact yours truly as soon as they have the money. Early birds will receive warmer hugs. Thank you.

The Best iPhone / iPod Touch Hack Ever!

2008-01-14T15:54:00.000-08:00

Makes me wanna hack my Touch... . Curse you beer and popcorn!

Wall-E

2008-01-11T17:11:00.000-08:00

Way in the future, Earth was covered with trash and was impossible to live in. Mankind had to evacuate but someone forgot to turn off the last remaining robot. Introducing WALL-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class). He's the last surviving robot on earth whose only purpose is to clean up trash. 700 years of collecting knick-knacks and trying on bras (see picture) WALL-E stumbled upon EVE, a sleek new robot send to earth to check on things. She found out that the key to the planet's future lies in the hand of WALL-E and she raced back to space to report her findings to the humans. Meanwhile, WALL-E followed her all over the galaxy because 700 years of seclusion was more than enough for a robot to acquire feelings.

In theaters 06.27.08. Can't wait!

THEY'RE REAL!!!

2008-01-01T07:59:00.000-08:00

What did I tell ya? Eh? Eh? They are real! We're just one baby short. Maybe Maggie's the one behind the camera. It is spooky though. But, it's the effort that counts, right, you eerily yellow people?

Incubus Live in Jakarta!

2007-12-28T18:57:00.000-08:00

Incubus is coming to town! At first I thought, yeah right, must be one of those rumors we've heard about so many times. But hey, THEY ARE COMING, believe you me. This has been the best news I've heard all year. Can't wait till next year... WHICH IS THREE DAYS AWAY, HELL YEAH!

What the?

2007-12-25T15:58:00.000-08:00

Missed this one, eh, Google?

click on the pictures for a better view.

Restoring My Faith in the Local Music Scene

2007-12-18T07:34:00.000-08:00

I consider myself a very open minded person, but when it comes to music, I'd be like my nephew with veggies. Constantly observing his food for those icky, yucky, slimy, smelly green stuff, he's a walking talking (and most of the time running and screaming) vegetable filter. Now I know this may sound conceited and arrogant, but I filter my music just like my nephew does with his veggies. I find it highly offensive if a band that has no musicality, only uses the same 3 chords excessively, and has music with lyrics which could easily be mistakable as daily conversations between idiots has been overly appreciated by the public. Incidentally, I have this huge problem with the local music scene. None of em seem to please my ear buds. None of them, except this band right here! Enter Padi. Their music = my taste. Those are not lyrics they're singing. Those are poetry, my friends, unadulterated poetry. And music without poetry is like Beavis without Butthead.

Pimp My Site!

2007-11-23T08:02:00.000-08:00

Remember that blog o' mine? Well, I got bored with the design. So after my fifth cup of coffee and six hours of non-stop shoddy web designing in Photoshop, my blog has a slightly different face. Hope you like it!

Today's Menu

2007-11-21T01:25:00.001-08:00

in all it's styrofoamed glory.

FIBO, creative (power)house!

2007-11-18T10:13:00.001-08:00

Kudos to Fibo, the online fashion creative powerhouse which has just been launched this week. Fibo is a shop like no other. With a novel approach to the fashion industry and a posse of multi-talented designers (including yours truly) under its wings, Fibo is bound to be not just a player, but a leader in the local fashion scene (fingers crossed till the epoch's over). Check us out!

Say, by John Mayer

2007-11-17T05:25:00.000-08:00

Rejoice, John Mayer fans! His new song is on the horizon. The song is titled "Say" and it's the soundtrack of the upcoming Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman movie, "The Bucket List". You can check out the song on his blog.

R2-D2 Soy Sauce Bottle

2007-11-16T05:05:00.000-08:00

Borrowed this from TokyoMango. Just open up his head, put some soy sauce (source?) into the cavity, close it up, and you're all set for geekdom. Now, can you pass my C3PO ketchup?

An Open Letter to Sosro

2007-11-14T07:40:00.001-08:00

Dear Sosro,

First, allow me to thank you for the 1 liter pack. Truthfully I have had visions of it back when I was a toddler. I used to think that life would be better if a bottle of Teh Botol is not a bottle of Teh Botol but two bottles of Teh Botol, or even three, or occasionally four.

But why stop there, Sosro? Why not add another 9 liters to that pack? Why don't we make it a 10 liter Society Pack, or even a 20 liter gallon. It would make my life that much easier. I'm sure your millions of clientele will highly appreciate the product. Hopefully you may profit from the undubitable increase of sales you will come across. So you see, it's a win-win situation. You scratch our backs and we'll scratch yours.

To help you get started, I've also attached this gallon and dispenser concept. Hopefully this will come true in the near future.

Hope to hear from you soon,

Me

The Beverage of Gods

2007-11-14T06:35:00.000-08:00

May I present to you the only liquid refreshment you'll ever need 'til infinity and beyond. This particular brand of bottled beverage offers you the perfect blend of tea, water, and sugar, thus creating the most sought after flavor in the entire universe. The flavor itself remains unchanged from the very first time it went on the market in the 1970s but this godly beverage has been able to entice every single tongue in the nation and beyond. Unlike Coke, you can't clean your toilet bowl with it so it's a heck of a lot safer for your body (that is, until you get that diabetes). Regardless, you can't find a more perfect blend of tea anywhere else in this world.

Now, behold, the latest revolution from Sosrodjojo, the 1 liter Teh Botak (Teh Botol Kotak) family pack. Actually, it's not as much as a revolution, but what the hey! It's bigger (duh!) and it's relatively cheaper. Happy, happy, joy, joy!

Whovin and the Whatmunks?

2007-11-05T09:32:00.000-08:00

Wow, bad movies does come in waves this year. Alvin and the Chipmunks will be out this holiday season. Just like Garfield, the Chipmunks have found their way to the big screen via the magic of CGI... and they have Earl as their human father. We'll see how that turns out.

Question: Did Earl marry a squirrel???

Bad Movie! Sit! Bad Movie!!!

2007-11-05T07:47:00.000-08:00

The Seeker, Highlander: The Source, Van Wilder 2, Minotaur,... ick! Who allowed these B-movies to the big screen? Check out the depressing reviews on the Seeker here. Highlander??? I didn't even realize people still make those. Van Wilder = Ryan Reynolds, not his goofy indian sidekick slash apprentice. The first Van Wilder ain't that bad but what's the point of making the sequel if you failed to sign the leading actor from the first movie? And don't get me started on Minotaur.

Where have all the good movies gone? It's been two months of famine and if this goes on I'll completely lose all my faith in Tinseltown. At least American Gangster will be out this month. Let's hope some of the good ones will open up just in time for the holidays.

I miss going to the movies.

Man, get a room!

2007-11-02T07:16:00.000-07:00

Your Smile Tastes Like Rubber!

2007-10-06T22:20:00.000-07:00

Do people frown at you everytime you smile? Do you have a hard time expressing happiness? Well say no more, help is on the way. Introducing the beauty smile trainer. This jelly like rubber will help you smile better so that people don't throw stuff at you anymore. Now, if only someone could help Mr. Nicholson shrink away his grin.

Buck You!

2007-10-05T10:28:00.001-07:00

... and buck you too, Fush!

SpongeBob TubePants

2007-09-21T09:46:00.000-07:00

This 15" monitor is a must have for anyone with a pineapple for a house (and bananas for a brain).

One Leash, Please!

2007-09-15T09:59:00.000-07:00

Brain Damaged

2007-09-10T09:29:00.000-07:00

I just found out that goldfish have a memory span of only 3 seconds. Must be hard for them. They're like, "I'm gonna swim over to that little rock ornament over there and... Whoa, look at that nice rock ornament over there, maybe I'll... Hey, what's that? Wow, what a nice rock ornament... ." This goes on and on for 6-8 years until eventually they die of old age. (Or until they simply forget to breathe).

Speaking of brain disorders, I also happen to have one... or two... okay three. The first one is that I forget appointments, birthdays, daily activities that should be a routine, even names. That's normal, you say? Well, yeah, come to think about it, forgetfulness is such a common memory problem. Everyone tends to have one from time to time. I just wish that mine doesn't have to take place on a daily basis.

The second one is a part of my defense mechanism. Or at least I hope it is. Remember that Aussie girl from Lost who had several days of her life completely wiped out from her memory? Mine is something like that. How shall I put this into words? It's fairly easy for me to blank over bad memories. Like that time when... um... when... . Well, you get the point.

Now this last one is really annoying and not to mention dangerous. I almost crashed once because of it. Imagine this, you're driving a good distance from the car in front of you. Suddenly the car slows down. You noticed the blazing red brake lights. You noticed that car going to a halt. You can even start to read those tiny numbers at the bottom of the license plate. But somehow you fail to see the magnitude of putting your feet on the brake pad. The oh so vital infos from the retina reached your brain alright, but that's it, rendering you oblivious to what's about to happen. Suddenly your brain kicks in and all the infos came knocking down. You hit the brakes harder than you think possible leaving a trail of tiremarks behind. You manage to avoid the collision, barely. This rarely happens but when it does, dear God help me.

Well, sucks to be me, ain't it? But at least my memory's good enough to write a blog or something. Hey, look at that nice rock ornament!

Holy Friggin Touchscreen!

2007-09-06T09:08:00.000-07:00

Steve Jobs, you rascal!

What Vacation?

2007-09-01T04:54:00.000-07:00

At long last I'm back! Phew, it's been a while! I blame my previous slower than snail ISP. I subscribed to a new one this morning and it's [pause for effect] blinding fast! Finally, a connection with nitrous oxide.

Greetings From Hang Nadim Airport

2007-07-21T02:46:00.000-07:00

A quick blogpost. I'm at the Hang Nadim airport right now, waiting to board my plane to Jakarta whilst blogging away via the free wireless internet access.

The world sure is smaller ever since they invented wi-fi and broadband internet.

Whoops, that's my plane right there. Better pack up. See you soon... with chocolates! :D

Greetings From Singapore (Not Really...)

2007-07-20T07:07:00.000-07:00

Contrary to what the family planned yesterday, turns out we couldn't manage to wake up at first light. You know how thick hotel curtains are. Thick enough for Count Chocula to party all day. Well, thanks to those curtains, we all woke up at 8:30. Went to the harbor at 9:30, boarded Wavemaster 7 (Whatever happened to Wavemaster 1-6? Now, now, let's all think positive here... .) at 10ish. The just about waveless Singapore Strait puts me to sleep along the way. We arrived at Singapore's Harbour Bay at 11. The complete route was like this: Harbour Bay » Orchard Road via MRT » Two hours of non stop drooling over miles and miles of books at Borders » Bugis via MRT » Sim Lim Square (Singapore's Mangga Dua equivalent) » Back to Harbour Bay. After waiting for an hour and a half, we boarded Wavemaster 8 (Hyuk, naaah, it's still Wavemaster 7). Singapore Strait at night was grumpy as hell. I tried to sleep for awhile but those waves kept me awake. I feel like a baby being rocked by some drunken mother in Oktoberfest. We finally reached Batam at eight. Lemme tell you this, going to Singapore for less than a day does not leave one satisfied. Especially when you're constantly accompanied by scattered thunderstorms.

Greetings From Batam

2007-07-19T05:34:00.000-07:00

I am currently in Batam, whiling away all my free time before I have to wake up every morning to commute in concert with everyone else who refuse to be jobless. Got a decent room at a peculiarly named hotel (Planet Holiday, go figure!) with an internet connection. A free broadband internet connection. It's faster than my internet connection back home (which is like comparing a Daihatsu to a Ferrari). I really don't need the olympic size pool, the natural spa, or the fitness center ('cos I'm fit as it is... NOT!), just give me an internet connection and you'll summon the jolly 'ol geek within. I'll be going to Singapore via ferry first thing tomorrow morning. Dunno what I can do there though, what with the thunderstorms on the forecast and lack of... liquidity. But if you play nice, I promise to bring you home chocolates. ;)

WE'RE SORRY

2007-07-05T00:42:00.000-07:00

I was watching Die Hard 4.0 (Live Free or Die Hard, state side) with Ms. B yesterday when the screen went blank halfway through the movie. Apparently, people do a lot of amusing stuff when these things happen. So it kinda went like this:

John Mclane kicking some ass
↓
Blank screen
↓
Audience applauded
↓
One guy yelled, "Hey, the movie's out!"
Yes, we know, retard.
↓
Some kids are running around the studio (Uh-huh, underage kids in an R rated movie. America isn't the land of the free. Indonesia is.)
↓
Some other guy poses in front of the screen as his friend took a picture.
↓
After 5 minutes, the screen went back on and gradually shows this:

This reminds me of Microsoft's notorious blue screen of death. Albeit a bit inelegant, at least the studio's kind enough to say they're sorry. Fortunately after a couple of minutes of the red screen of death, John McClane kicks back into action and the body count moves faster than you can say yipikayay.

After several disappointing movie sequels that heavily depended on CGIs, it's damn fun to watch a good old kick ass action movie. Move over Spiderman, John McClane's cleaning the town.

Economics Does Not Make a Better Man Out of Me

2007-06-17T12:57:00.000-07:00

It took 3 years for me to realize that economics is not my forte. Graphic designing is my forte, along with computers, photography, and hopefully, marketing (an idea still in the making). You might be wondering, "why did you enroll in that friggin faculty, you dumbass?" Well, boys and girls, years ago when I was in high school, my economics grade was way better than average and although I'm starting to get good at computers, I was majoring in social sciences, sad for me. My graphic design skills were virtually non existent (papa graphic and mama design just started dating in my last highschool year. Their son was born sometime during my second year of college. Took em long enough...). Anyway, I did the most logical thing that I can think of back then, I signed up to the best economics school in the country (Back then, my university was the best in it's class. Now... it's just the same-o, lame-o, crap-o). Hey, don't give me that look! If you're in my position, you'd probably do the same thing.

Where was I? Oh yeah, my early college days. Those average grades kept falling and falling from the first year. Luckily on the second year of college, fate introduced me to the very wonderful world of,... you've guessed it, graphic design! You should've seen my first design. Truthfully it's just three cliparts mashed-up for no particular reason. It was the worst graphic design in history, but it was also the start of something big (*still crossing my fingers...*). Computer and photography skills also went up several notches. Again, the realization came just a tad too late. I went through my third year and cross over the closing line for changing faculties just like that. So, here I am, a graphic designer / IT specialist wannabe / photographer extraordinaire trapped in the world of economics for my sixth year. This week I'll be presenting my final research to three very faculty members and going through that comprehension test to finally get out of this God-forsaken faculty. My advise for all you good people out there: find your dreams before you hit the ground, then run like hell!

Six years of wasteful opportunity costs. F**k em. Now let's get this over with.

Let's Get Ready to Rumble!

2007-05-31T00:34:00.000-07:00

Here's something you won't see everyday (or month... or year...). Steve Jobs and Bill Gates on the same stage, battling for world domination! Well, not exactly... .

Me, That Old Guy, and That Girl

2007-05-25T08:54:00.001-07:00

In my country, people often view native girls hanging out with expatriates (we call them bule here, pronounced boo-lay, perhaps not that different with 'haole') as hookers. Of course, this is not always the case, but the basic rules to tell apart the hookers from the non hookers are as follows:
1. Usually the expat is far older than the hooker. Like... 15-20 years older... .
2. Hookers wears skimpy dresses (courtesy of the expatriates).
3. Most importantly, only a handful of hookers are fluent in English, as they don't need to take an English Proficiency Test to apply for their job. They may understand basic English, but they sure aren't ace conversationalists.

Those rules will apparently be put to the test later in this blog.

By the by, I'm writing this in Starbucks. Sitting on a sofa in front of me is a 'bule' and his hooky (sounded sweet in my head, thought I'd give it a try here). She's sitting next to my sofa. Here's how it happened. I was waiting for my ex, we were supposed to have dinner tonight. But she's available after 6, so I went to Starbucks and settled down on a three sofa table accompanied by a glass of frappe. I took out my trusty Macbook, put on my iPod, and started to revise my final paper. All's well for an hour. Took a gander at my watch, got half an hour left.

Out of nowhere, this 40 something bule came to me and asked if the sofa in front of me is taken. Half listening to Daughtry, I gave him a nod. To my bewilderment, Instead of pulling the sofa to another table, he sat there and motioned her young (20ish) lady friend wearing a short-short-short miniskirt to sit on the sofa next to me... . The place was empty for God's sake! Does he have to sit here at my table? My mind was stuck between "crap, do these guys know me?" and "awkward... awkward... awkward...". I tried to ignore them at first, hoping that they'd somehow have the decency to move those sofas a bit. But noooo... they're comfortable sitting there and chatting while I'm here, writing my blog to keep my sanity... and while I'm at it, I thought, I might as well make good use out of this situation.

Now, I refuse to engage in any conversation with them because then it would be harder for me to leave. But I still have my iPod on. So, first order of business, turn the volume down so I can eavesdrop on this lovely couple (all in the name of studying human behaviour, of course... and entertainment :D). Beg your pardon, Anna Molly, let me turn you down a little.

Bule: "... dress. But you look good in that."
Hooky: "Yes, I like. Thank you."
Bule: "You're welcome."

1 minute pause

Bule: "You should eat more, you look so thin."
Hooky: "I not thin, I eat much."
Bule: "Oh, really? But you look so thin. Do you exercise?"
Hooky: "Yes,... I run."
Bule: "Oh, you jog! That's nice. That's healthy."
Hooky: "Yes, nice. You run?"
Bule: "Me? Well, not as often as I should. But, yes, sometimes."
Hooky: nods dully
Bule: "Do you mind if we go back to our room after the movie?"
Hooky: "...Yes, is okay."
Bule: "Oh, we should be going, the movie's about to start!"

they both got up, and took off... just when things are starting to get juicy!

Well, there goes my afternoon with two complete strangers. It's been... quite educational... not to mention entertaining. Life lessons in a coffee house.

HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR !!!

2007-05-24T10:39:00.001-07:00

Get your daily dose of Brewster Rockit here: http://www.gocomics.com/brewsterrockit/2007/05/24/

Communicraving

2007-05-17T07:54:00.000-07:00

As a certified nerd, I surf the web 4 maybe 5 times a day with varied periods of online time. Here's what I always open lately in my browser. Gmail, YahooMail, Blogger, and the post-cyberculture internet social network service known as Friendster (haven't got the time to update to MySpace). Maybe it's because I have the pleasure of free time at home lately that I'm starting to crave for communication from the outside world. Even a misaddressed email would leave a grin on my face. That sounded a bit pathetic, so before you switch to pitying mode, let me assure you that I am not at all deprived of human contact. I go out with my friends at least twice a week. So, yes, I am sane and normal. To help asure you of my sanity, I took a personality disorder test. I have a low tendancy of any personality disorders out there according to these results.

But I'm still craving for cybercommunication. A possible theory that could explain this conundrum is the doppelgänger theory which stated that in the not so distant future, humans will lead two separate lives. The first one is the ones we see every day. The old man sitting beside you in the bus, the girl you saw helping an old lady cross the street, the dog (yes, dog) you played with last week in front of the coffee shop. The second one is when he/she/it goes home and connects to the web. The old man becomes that very attractive young woman you met on some chatroom, the girl becomes a gold-digging nympho, the dog becomes a dog with a longer tail (dogs will be able to go online in the future but still lack those imagination skills). Similar to dissociative identity disorder or split personality, if you will. The subject grows more and more distant from the other identity until the identities completely disregards each others presence.

In my problem, my other half (literally), the one that took over everytime I go to the net, is lacking communication with the outside world. He (or she?) doesn't acknowledge my daily life at all. He doesn't know when I'm having lunch with the guys, he doesn't know when I meet up with my thesis counselor, he doesn't even know when I watched TV with mom and dad 10 minutes ago. But wait! I'm writing this blog online! Doesn't that mean that I'm him? Then who am I? What? Why? Huh?

That is of course a theory I made up completely for the sake of this blog (it was good while it lasted though, aint it?). Well, I'm still looking forward for an email, a comment on my blog, or even a short short short friendster message. Drop me a line... pretty please... .

Anchored to CNN TODAY

2007-05-15T06:38:00.000-07:00

Meet Kristie Lu Stout, the anchor for CNN's morning program. She previously hosted Spark and Tech-Watch and also interviewed some of the most influential players of the business and technology world. Drop dead gorgeous and techno-savvy, now that's what I call an anchor! Whoa, gotta go, she's on again... .

Will You Ever Learn!?

2007-05-14T05:24:00.000-07:00

picture taken from http://gallery.neosynthesis.net/manip-peace/how_to_heal_a_broken_heart_001

Signal Fire Marathon

2007-05-05T09:19:00.000-07:00

Have you heard the new Snow Patrol Song? I have, and I'm lovin it (Parappa pappa... anyone? No? Ok...). It's called Signal Fire and it's on the spiderman 3 soundtrack (disappointing movie). Currently it's number one on my 'top 25 playlist' in iTunes. The music video have also captivated me. Take a look-see.

Oh, and for the musicians out there, I'll throw in the lyrics in case you suddenly feel the urge to sing. The chords are quite simple, really. A F#m E D for the verses, and A E F#m D for the chorus.

Signal Fire
by Snow Patrol

Verse 1

The perfect words never crossed my mind,
'cause there was nothing in there but you,
I felt every ounce of me screaming out,
But the sound was trapped deep in me,
All I wanted just sped right past me,
While I was rooted fast to the earth,
I could be stuck here for a thousand years,
Without your arms to drag me out,

Chorus

There you are standing right in front of me (x2)
All this fear falls away to leave me naked,
Hold me close cause I need you to guide me to safety
No I wont wait forever (x2)

Verse 2

In the confusion and the aftermath,
You are my signal fire,
The only resolution and the only joy,
Is the faint spark of forgiveness in your eyes,

Chorus

There you are standing right in front of me (x2)
All this fear falls away to leave me naked,
Hold me close cause I need you to guide me to safety,
There you are standing right in front of me (x2)
All this fear falls away to leave me naked,
Hold me close cause I need you to guide me to safety,
No I wont wait forever (x3)

25 and Living the Good Life

2007-04-26T09:30:00.000-07:00

I have a cousin who lives in New Zealand. He's 25 (at least I think he's 25...) and works as a building consultant. He was in Jakarta for 2 weeks and went back to NZ last Tuesday. He's smart and according to my lady friends, quite handsome. Last Saturday night my family took him out to diner. In one of the many conversations, I found out that he already has his own car. A '95 Honda Accord Maestro. It's an old car, I'll give you that, but he bought it with his own money, nevertheless. He's a couple of years older than me but he already has the pink slip to his car? That forced me to think hard about my life. I'll graduate next month (after years and years of endless anticipation) and work for two more years in some company and then continue to take my masters. By that time I'll be a bit over 25 and I don't think I'd be able to buy me a car of my own with all my savings. Well, maybe a very old and rusty corolla or sumthin under 20 million rupiahs. Credit, of course. You expect me to pay cash?

Wait for Me!!!!!!

2007-04-17T00:05:00.000-07:00

Imagine this. You were grabbing a bite with your two best friends, having the best porridge in town (Why porridge? Cos I said so). Prior to your first bite, another friend called and asked if you could bring his cell to his house. (He left it in your friend's car earlier. You've found it and brought it with you). After your first meal, you ended up chatting for a couple of minutes. Conversations ranged from friendship, work, lovelife, the usual suspects. In short, you were having a good time.

Afterwards, one of your friends paid the tab and the three of you started walking to her car. With them already sitting in front, you settled for the back seat. As you opened the rear door, something flashed in your mind. You left your friend's cell on the table next to the porridge bowl. Alerted, you briskly closed the car door and ran back to the shop. You asked the waiter if he had seen the phone. No luck... . You thought to yourself, maybe one of your friends has it.

You walked back to the parking lot only to find an empty parking space. ...pause for effect... Then you saw your friends car on the corner of your eye, rushing from the exit. You could've tried to run after them and risk looking awfully silly, but instead, your mind played a looping footage from several years ago, when you experienced something frighteningly similar.

Meanwhile, on board the car, both of your friends were apparently having a good time. Singing, talking, joking, and laughing, not a single hint of your absence in their conversation. But wait... what's that ringing? It's one of your friend's cell... and on the screen... your name was displayed as bright as ever. Took a couple of seconds for them to realize it. Then both of them glanced back to find an empty backseat.

And there you have it... a true story heard from a friend.

My Favorite Pastime

2007-04-10T08:02:00.000-07:00

Apparently I have a knack for babysitting. First, Derril. Now, Bebet. Hopefully I'll be a good dad sometime in the future, but I'll settle for being a good uncle for now. (Uncle eh... getting old, man)

Even Google Has a Sense of Humor

2007-04-02T06:25:00.000-07:00

Google opened up a new service called Google Toilet Internet Service Provider (or TiSP). They're basically offering you a fast and easy way to connect to the internet. But not with the usual dial-up, cable, or broadband connection, no, those are yesterday's technology. Google came up with a very... shall we say, innovative way for us to connect to the internet... via our toilet. After you apply to Google, you'll receive a TiSP installation kit. There's no easier way to explain how to install your new connection other than by literally flushing down the long fibre-optic cable included in the kit. The cable will then go through the plumbing system to one of the thousands of TiSP Access Nodes. You'll only need to connect the other end of the cable to the wireless router... and voila!, you're done! You're online, as simple as that.

Of course this is a seriously hillarious prank (which I assume you already realized after reading the term Toilet and Internet Service Provider in the same sentence). Here's to show you that even multi billion dollar companies do have some sense of humor. Microsoft could learn a thing or two.

Photoshop CS3 at Your Doorstep!

2007-04-01T00:19:00.000-07:00

Graphic and web designers rejoice! Your new arsenal is almost here! Check this out!!!

Can You Get a 70 Cents Haircut?

2007-03-28T07:09:00.000-07:00

Well, can ya'? Oh, it's not just a haircut. You can also ask for the barber to shave yer Robinson Crusoe beard. You'll also get a cup of icy cold mineral water, a warm towel, and a 3 minutes massage. The whole package for just 6000 rupiahs (about 70 cents), no additional charge at all. Too good to be true? You bet! Maybe the owner's got a bad case of philanthropy.

I've become a regular at that particular barbershop, but everytime I went there, the rock-bottom price never ceased to amaze me. Granted, the shop itself is not particularly comfortable. No windows, no doors, just a 4 x 4 room with two barber seats. Air conditioning is virtually non-exsistent, except for the warm summer breeze and the cloud of dust from the occasional traffic. The shop also has a very dominant oriental ambience, you can easily find chinese ornaments hanging on the wall and on the ceiling (maybe the head barber / owner has some chinese heritage in him, but he sure didn't look like one). The towel was warmed inside a rice-cooker (no score there for healthiness and subtlety, but full points for originality... and humor). But hey! For 6000 rupiahs, who am I to complain.

But the most important part from every visit to a barbershop is and will always be, the result (i.e., how cool my hair looks after barbering). And I can tell you this, the barbers there have never let me down. Except for the time when the barber accidentally cuts my chin and neck. But still... 6000 rupiahs man! It can't get any cheaper than that!

If you guys wanna try, head out to Pondok Kelapa Raya and look for the little pink shop with lots of people queueing (one of them will probably be me...). I always forgot the name of the shop though, sorry.

Cookies, Cookies, and Fortune Cookies

2007-03-25T09:49:00.000-07:00

The Fortune Cookie is a thin, crisp cookie baked around a piece of paper with words of faux wisdom or vague prophecy, usually served with Chinese food as a dessert. The message inside may also include a list of lucky numbers (used by some as lottery numbers) and a Chinese phrase with translation. Despite the conventional wisdom, they were actually invented in California, not China. (wiki)

Just yesterday I had my first fortune cookie in years. Was hoping to get a really, really good prophecy. Instead, I got a boring words of wisdom (i.e. "The smart thing is to prepare for the unexpected.").

Yeek, I don't need that kind of thing. What I do need is some precise prophecy to give me some breathing room and hope for a better future. What I need... is this:

Most Expensive Minute!

2007-03-21T10:06:00.000-07:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, that was the most expensive minute of my life! Rp 2000,00 is just ain't worth it.

No Longer Waiting!

2007-03-19T18:01:00.000-07:00

Work at a marketing company; Get a doctoral degree through a scholarship program; Establish my first company; Settling down with the woman of my dreams and start a family of 4, 5, or maybe 6 (7?) if she's up to it; Buy my dad a brand new E-class; Go on my first vacation with the whole family; Continue living. Those were my dreams. Not anymore it ain't. Now those are my game-plan. My future to-be. My goals.

There comes a time in your life when you can't wait anymore for your dreams to happen. For me, that time is now. Or rather, yesterday. I spent the weekend in Bandung with my parents to visit my grandma. She has this long shelf in the living room full of pictures of her family. At the end of the shelf, there's this picture of me and my family, taken almost 20 years ago. I was still scrawny back then (not the subject of this post, but it's damn fun to write it down). Mom was still slender and dad still has his hair (again, not the subject of this post, but still damn fun!). Anyways, I saw something in his eyes in that old family photo. I saw content, and more than that, I saw pride. Pride for his achievements, pride for his work, pride for his family, even pride for his scrawny 7 year old son who was handsome as hell even back then. *LOL*

Incidentally, I also had a conversation that morning with the old man about my future. Usually it was a very delicate matter for me as it involves my perpetually problematic thesis (1.5 years and still going strong, bloody Hell!!!) but I was in a good mood yesterday, so I decided to humor him. For the billionth time, he asked me about what I wanted to be after I graduate. And for the billionth time, I told him about moving from pure economics (never my cup of tea, mind you, taking pure economics was the biggest blunder of my life) to marketing. And maybe owning my own marketing research company sometime in the future, as well as my very own advertising / design studio. Once again he told me about his life, how he made it from scratch. Oddly enough, though I've memorized his words at the back of my head, that time I really listened.

He told me that I have to make out a plan, a real plan for the future. Not just dreams, no. Everyone has dreams, but not everyone work out a plan to reach for those dream. His words must've struck a chord somewhere in that encephalon of mine, cos I've decided to put my feet down then and there. Enough dreaming! Now is the time to build my stairway and reach for the heavens (intended to be read while listening to Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven") I want to be content in my family picture. I want my son to see the pride in my eyes. So, I'll work for it, even if I have to move heaven and earth. Anyone coming with me?

New Linkin Park Album

2007-03-13T04:04:00.000-07:00

Just visited www.linkinpark.com. LP's got a new album titled 'Minutes to Midnight'. The album took a total of 14 months of rigorous studio time. Initially released on summer 2006, the band pushed back the release date to Monday, May 14. The band just finished shooting the video for their first single 'What I've Done', directed by Joe Hahn, which will be released on April 2.

"This was a year-and-a-half long process of really hard work and experimentation in the studio that yielded about 150 rough songs," guitarist Brad Delson told Billboard.com. The band recorded 17 tracks and is now deciding which ones will make the final cut.

The new album was produced by lead singer Mike shonoda and the multiple Grammy award-winning producer, Rick Rubin. 'Minutes to Midnight' will deliver "more of a stripped down, classic-rock, and hip-hop kind of feel," frontman Chester Bennington revealed in Blender magazine. Describing the album as "dark and spooky, poppy, and very melodic," Bennington declared his band is "straying away from a lot of the predictable sounds [it] had in the past [by] using vintage guitars and drums made out of wood and skin for a more tribal sound. It's definitely not nu-metal."

The full track list:
1. Stand
2. Bleed It Out
3. Get Through
4. What I've Done
5. In This World
6. The Little Things Give You Away
7. Hold Nothing Back
8. Over The Top
9. Prommise
10. Real Life
11. Afraid This Time
12. 2.World
13. Until The End
14. Collapsing The Unit
15. We Use the Pain
16. One Perfect Something + Bonus Tracks
17. No Way!

UPDATE:
They changed their genre... I like the old LP better, give me back the old LP... .

You Gotta Check Askaninja.com!

2007-03-06T06:02:00.000-08:00

Got ahold of this show last year on itunes. Ask a Ninja started out as an internet video show last year, when the video podcasting hype was (and still is) young and vibrant. It's basically a one man show, featuring a ninja who answers any question (the sillier, the better) that you send to him via email (yeah, modern-day ninjas also use emails: askaninja@gmail.com).

The show always starts with the silly but remarkably catchy theme song (I am ninja // he is ninja // she is ninja too // I am ninja // we are ninjas // und I believe that you are ninja too). You'll get used too it (and grow to love it) each time you saw a new episode.

Next, the ninja will read out an email from a viewer which will also be the episode's theme (e.g: Jason asks a ninja: my wife really wants to know if ninjas need love)

Then he'll answer the question, ninja style. By ninja style, I mean total sillyness. Most of the time he'll say stupid remarks that'll guarentee to tickle your funny bones. Another time he'll make a fool out of himself. But he always maintain that cocky ninja personality, which is actually the soul of the show.

Here's one of my favorite excerpts:

Somebody asked the ninja how to teach his dog ninja skills. The ninja replies:
Just because you teach your dog the skills, doesn't mean that you control how he uses it.
I had a buddy of mine. He taught his dog to be a master of disguise.
Dog ran away.
Three years later, he found out his long time girlfriend
...
was actually his dog.
...
That'll mess you up,
talk about counseling... .
...

The Ask a Ninja Video Podcast is currently sitting on the top ten list on the iTunes comedy podcast category. You can check him out at www.askaninja.com.

Poop Your Ideas, Literally!

2007-02-25T20:20:00.000-08:00

Here's something for you guys who likes puzzles as well as spending long times at the toilet. The company's website says that each square of the roll is printed with a different mind bending puzzle or game (in colour), that'll sure to keep you occupied while you are otherwise occupied.Very creative, and yet, very gross.

Sleep Like a Baby

2007-02-25T09:34:00.000-08:00

There's a new guy in my extended family. Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce, Devan. At barely two months, he already has lots of hobbies, to name a few, making his big brother (my other nephew) jealous, staring at random people and shiny objects, crying until he gets what he wants, and smiling without any noticeable reason. But sleeping is the one thing that he excels the most. He seems to have found the ideal sleeping position, flat on his tummy. Until scientifically proven, we can only give credence to these pictures (taken discreetly without his consent, so, keep it hush-hush, everyone)

If that's not the most satisfied face in the world, I don't know what is. He's pushing the term 'sleep like a baby' to a whole new level. I think I'll try that position tonight. I'll tell you how it goes tomorrow.

>>Yep. Tried it. Didn't work as well as I thought it would. The risk of drooling was unusually higher. But I guess you don't have to worry about that if you were a baby.

Grape Fanta!

2007-02-20T10:27:00.000-08:00

Fanta lovers, rejoice! Back in the 90s, I used to love this yummy, yummy beverage. Then one day, it just vanished without a trace. The last time I went to Sogo, I found this! Well, it's not made in Indonesia, that's for sure. Otherwise it wouldn't cost as much (Rp 17.000,00 per can? That's pure rip-off). Despite the price, I bought one not just because of the nostalgic taste that it would undoubtly offer, but also because of the awe-inspiring pacakaging! Just look at it! Pretty cool huh? It's a can and a bottle... it's a cottle. And the graphics are also marvelous. Japanese graphics always makes me green with envy. I wonder how the strawberry and orange look like... . To wrap it up, GIVE ME BACK MY GRAPE FANTA, YOU LOUSY INDONESIAN FANTA PEOPLE!

Here are some flavors that I really, really hope that Fanta will never, ever, make:

1. Mineral Fanta
Cos that's like... stupid.

2. Durian Fanta
God put spikes on them for a reason! What other clue do you need? A sign on every Durian that says, 'DO NOT TOUCH'? Putting them in a Fanta bottle will be the worst insult to the beverage world.

3. Fanta Claus,
When you're old, and wrinkly
Don't be sad, be merry
Grow a beard, and a belly
And put on a suit, red as cherry
- Fanta Claus, for the jolly old man inside of us -

*update - Turns out, those lousy indonesian fanta people aren't that lousy after all. Welcome back to Indonesia, grape fanta!

Old Cell, Old Friend

2007-02-15T10:34:00.000-08:00

I really miss my old cellphone. The Siemens SX1 (mine's black). I know what you're thinking. How the hell can one type an sms with those keypads. Trust me, it's easier than it looks. When you get the hang of it, it'll be even faster than your standard phone. The SX1 was introduced at the 2003 CeBIT. I bought one in 04 and used it for about a year and a half. As far as Symbian based phones go, this one also comes with flaws, mainly the slow and less responsive menus and the fact that it'd 'restart to improve performance' more than often. Other than that, it's a really good phone. The design is undoubtedly unconventional but bold as hell and everlasting. I mean, it looked great then and it still looks good now! Alas, I was then seduced by the younger S700i from Sony Ericsson (which less than a year later was traded in for an M600i) I sold the SX1 to a friend of mine (he still uses it to this very day). You won't find another phone like this for quite some time. It's not just a phone, it's a piece of art. Nokia, eat yer heart out!

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone! (Everyone=Ladies)

2007-02-13T13:46:00.000-08:00

Well here we are, we reached one of the most prodigious moment of the year, where everyone and everything seems to look monochromatically ff69b4 (for you who don't speak hexadecimally, that's Hot Pink) . And, just like last year, still single and living large, har har har. I have to admit that when I was still still dating, my ex and I refused to celebrate Valentine's (our defense at that time was that we can show our affection on any given time of the year, we don't need any special day to do so). This year though, Valentine's constantly reminding me of my dating status. Not that I'm uncomfortable with it. But somehow society's pretentious attitude on life is encouraging me to boldly enter the dating scene yet again. But single life is purely addictive! How can I wave goodbye to this much freedom!?

Well, I guess it won't do me much harm to say this to everyone (again, strictly for the ladies):
Happy Valentine's Day!

Do-it Yourself Projects: Paper Chopper

2007-02-13T09:48:00.001-08:00

Introducing my new pet-project. Let's call it, the 'Do-it Yourself Projects'. For our first project, we will learn to put together a Paper Chopper. You only need a piece of paper aproximately 10-15 cm x 2cm. You can cut or tear any piece of paper (flip it first and then tear along the flip line). It doesn't have to be the exact measurement. Just make sure the vertical span is about 5-7 times longer than the horizontal span. Once it's ready, follow the instructions below.

01.
Tear the paper as shown in the picture below.

02.
Next, flip the lower part like so:

03.
Bend (DON'T FLIP) the upper part of the paper. When you're finished, it should look like this.

04.
Finished! Say hello to your little paper chopper. The only thing to do next is to throw it and show it off to your buddies (it also works well with the ladies, maintain that charisma while you throw it, smiling a lot won't do you any harm). Oh, this is also a good ice breaker if you're being introduced to your girlfriend's little brother/sister. Instant success and cheap as free. (You can thank me later)

05.

Expect this kind of reaction.

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i141/ItsZodiac/myspace-junk/laugh.jpg

Well, that's it for today, hope you enjoy it. See you on the next Do-it Yourself Projects.

Sick-Leave

2007-02-11T04:00:00.000-08:00

I'm not doing one today... . Not... feeling... so good... .

My Ever-Successful Past

2007-02-06T08:31:00.000-08:00

Did you watch last year's Academy Awards? Remember the part when I won the best supporting actor? Thx again for all your support everyone.

Incidentally, I found this cool website called 'The Academy Awards Acceptance Speech Generator'. So, if you're up for an Oscar but don't have the time to come up with an acceptance speech, be my guest.

Missing This

2007-02-05T08:31:00.000-08:00

Remember Wok With Yan? A cooking show on TV, aired on Sunday mornings. As a boy with no culinary superpowers at all but jumps in every chance to eat Chinese food, I really relish that show. Stephen Yan was a very good host, funny, lively, and interactive, even with a certain twelve year old at home. Yan always uses a large Chinese cooking pan called wok (hence the title). In every show, he uses different aprons with some bad 'wok' puns, like "Wok & Roll" and "Wok the Heck?" (Kids loved it! At least I did...). Then, at the end of every show, he'd invite one of his audiences to taste his cooking. Aaaah, the good ol' days, when TV still has good and relatively educational shows. Well, if by any chance, some reasonable TV people are reading this, how about doing some reruns of the show? It must be cheap, since it first aired like 20 years ago and it's certainly better than all those annoyingly parallel gossip shows filling up otherwise valuable air time in the mornings.

Guess Where I Went Last Night!

2007-01-27T17:30:00.000-08:00

Okay, here's the scoop, I went to the guys' graduation ceremony yesterday. Took pictures of 'em and their families (and also their boy/girlfriends, fiances, spouses - my God I'm getting old). We went to a mall later on, celebrating their new status as the unemployed workforce. As for me, I had been in a really bad mood from the start of the day. Fortunately, Ms. B came to the rescue. She called me when I was eating a cleverly disguised ~~beef bowl~~ rice bowl (90% rice, 8% beef, 2% bowl). Here's how it went:

Me: Yes?
B : Where are you?
Me: At a mall with the guys, wassup?
B: Well... I got two free press passes for the Hoobastank Concert tonight.
Me: What? Like? This night?
B: Yeah, just got it from a co-worker from a sister magazine.
Me: What time will they be they playing?
B: 8-ish
Me: That's like... less than 3 hours. Count me in!
B: Okay, C U!

Next thing I know, after gloating to the guys (har har har, sorry guys, if she had more than 2 tickets, I'd be glad to share it with you) I rushed to her office, and hightailed it to Hooba. We arrived at 8.40, parked, hustled by the parking guy to pay 20.000 rupiahs up front (that's a little more than two bucks - extremly expensive for Jakarta standards, but if you don't pay up, you'll find scratch marks on your car when you get back, freakin assholes).

By then the band had already started their first song. So we rushed to the entrance, met several artists along the way, some of which B greeted like a friend (working in the media does have its priviledges). When we went inside, the place wasn't as crowded as we thought it would be (unlike the Linkin Park concert awhile back). We went to the edge of the crowd and enjoyed the first song that we heard that night. I also got to practice my photography skills with my dad's smaller semi pro Canon Powershot G7 (too bad I didn't bring my SLR, it's really hard to take pictures under poor lightings).

Before I went to the concert, some friends told me that Hoobastank was not that good in doing live performances. Well, they sure proved 'em wrong last night. The concert was great! Douglas Robb, the frontman and vocalist, was able to communicate well with the crowd. He also memorized some basic Indonesian like "bagus!" (good!) and "nyanyi sama-sama!" (let's sing together!). The crowd really loved him for it. Dan Astrin on the guitars kicked ass last night. And so was Chris Hesse on the drums. The crowd sang happy birthday for him. It's his 27th birthday, according to Doug (Yeah right, Doug...).

Can't wait for the next (free) concert! Har har har.

My Pet Peeves

2007-01-19T21:17:00.001-08:00

Everyone has their pet peeves, random things that easily ticks 'em off. My top 5 are these:
1. Indonesian drivers (especially those friggin motorcycles)
Not that I'm generalizing or anything, But most drivers here use their bollocks, not their brains. Proof? Here you go.
2. Indonesian soap operas
Indonesian soap operas are the worst ones of their kind. The acting... wait, WHAT ACTING? And don't get me started with the storylines. But I do look forward for "Jomblo," the only one worth watching these days.
3. Queue breakers
Welcome to Indonesia, the land of the free. Free to break any queue, that is (and coming soon, free to break any rule too, har har har). Fuckin idiots don't have a clue of getting in line. Nor do they have any compassion for other people already standing in line for an hour. Selfish bastards, that's what they are.
4. Self righteous fundamentalists
You know who they are. Trampling along main streets, closing bars and nightclubs (not that I go there, mind you). Preaching on the 7 o'clock news about immorality, religion, and how they serve a higher purpose. Who the hell do they think they are? Here's a free advice, GET A LIFE!
5. Backstabbers
Self-explanatory.

Yes, I do realize that numero uno a cuatro really represents Indonesia's conditions. So for fairness' sake, next time I'll explain the benefits of living in this extremist-infested, disaster-magnet, corruption-consumed country we call Indonesia. It's fuckin chaotic, you're gonna love it.

Tasty!

2007-01-15T09:13:00.000-08:00

Aaah, finally, new looks for my blog. About time, I might add... . So... whaddayathink? Tasty, eh? Not bad for an HTML newbie, huh? Suggestions and comments are welcome.

Why Do Men Have Nipples?

2007-01-13T04:56:00.001-08:00

I've been wondering that myself. Why do men have nipples? They don't do anything. They don't have any medical purpose. They don't even serve any artistic value (Remember Joel Schumacher's infamous Batman Forever suit? No? here's a reminder.). When I saw this book in Kinokuniya, I was somewhat intrigued (though not confident enough to buy it, especially with the inevitable random raising of the eyebrows) So when my ex offered me to borrow her's, how can I possibly refuse?

The book actually offers some great insight. The writers have answers to the most absurd questions like "Can you lose a contact lens in the back of your head?" or "If you are stranded on a desert island, should you drink seawater or your own urine?" and of course, "Why do men have nipples?"

So, why do men have nipples? The answer, quoted from page 30, is this:

We are mammals and blessed with body hair, three middle ear bones, and the ability to nourish our young with milk that females produced in modified sweat glands called mammary glands. Although females have the mammary glands, we all start out in the similar way in the embryo. During development, the embryo follows a female template until about six weeks, when the male sex chromosome kicks in for a male embryo. The embryo then begins to develop all of its male characteristics. Men are thus left with nipples and also with some breast tissue. Men can even get breast cancer and there are some medical conditions that can cause male breasts to enlarge. Abnormal enlargement of breasts in a male is known as gynecomastia. Gynecomastia can be caused by using anabolic steroids. So, if your favorite athlete suddenly develops man boobs and start winning medals then you know the reason why.

Holy Shit, an iPhone!

2007-01-12T10:01:00.000-08:00

I've been wondering why there aren't any gadget that I'll look up to in 2007. Enter, the iPhone. Apple just announced it on their website and I just read Time's exclusive about it 5 minutes ago. Steve Jobs also introduced it at the MacWorld Expo 2007 in Frisco. As a certified nerd, these kind of news always wakes me up.

With no keyboard in sight, the iPhone mimics most PDA-phones in the market. But it's not an Apple product if it doesn't offer something different. Jobs said that the phone will revolutionize the way we use our cellphones today. The most important aspect of the iPhone is that it's designed to work effortlessly and still retain the stylish Apple forte. The menu bar at the bottom of the main menu, as you can see above, consists of several icons representing the most basic functions (phone, mail, web, iPod). You might also be able to change the other icons of the main menu (similar to the dock in OS X). When you touch one of those icons, the phone not only opens the corresponding application, it actually transforms the 320 x 420 screen to the application.

Not only that, the iPhone has built in sensors that will adjust the screen when you rotate the phone from portrait to landscape (a la the first Sony MP3 walkman). There are also proximity sensors that can detect when you put your ear to the speaker. This way you won't accidentally touch the icons on the display when you're taking a call (smart!).

Apple also develops the multi touch feature. Similar to the way you use the mouse on the macbook touchpad, you can use one finger to move around the menu, but you can also use two fingers to zoom in or out and scroll through pages. This is a very ingenious interface system. This way, you'll only have to use your fingers (two fingers max, to be exact) to control the device.

The iPhone itself has similar dimensions to the iPod, 61mm x115mm x 11.6mm, and weights about 135 grams. It has a 2 MP camera and a 4 GB and 8 GB storage with an aproximate price of $499 and $599, respectively. The iPhone will be available in the US in June, Europe by the end of this year, and it'll find it's way to Asia and the rest of the world next year (damnit!).

Bless you, Steve Jobs, for reminding me how it feels like to drool over new technology all over again. Can't wait for 2008!

The New SoKlin Ad :)

2007-01-08T09:00:00.000-08:00

Made this myself. The pocong was taken from this website. The detergent was scanned from some old magazine. Feels good to have an outlet for my evolving creativity.

Prius is Coming!

2007-01-06T06:40:00.000-08:00

I went to the local Toyota Website today. They have a new section there called Toyota Hybrid. Do you know what this means?? It means that it's just a matter of time before Prius comes out! Yippee!! Actually, it won't make any difference for me since I won't have enough money to buy it. But still, a vehicle that's capable to reach 25 km/l deserves to have that kind of attention. That's like going to the gas station once a month. Eat that, Shell!

Now, if only they could make a hybrid macbook.

Additional Resolution

2007-01-03T06:50:00.000-08:00

Do you know how it feels like to start anew with nothing but problems in your life? Waking up suddenly feels like starting a car after a long winter. Although you know that most of the things you'll come across for the next couple of weeks is either arduos misadventures or constant dissapointments, you still have to get up and get out. Otherwise you'll just be stuck there for the rest of the season. You can't put your life on hold! That's just a waste of time.

Presuming that you have an entourage of close friends nearby, they sure will help you to get through those couple of weeks, but what if that's one of your problems? No, I'm not saying that you're misanthropic. Let's just imagine that you're in a delicate situation with some of the buddies... and the rest of them... well, let's assume that they've got bigger things on their mind for the time being. Asking any of them for help surely will not be as easy as it used to be, let alone them offering you help.

It's only a matter of time till you breakdown and fall. Then what will you do? Who the hell will help you get up? No one. No one but yourself! So this is my overdue additional resolution: to be more self reliant for the things that really matters in life . Ask me how it went 360 days from now, if you please.

New Year's Eve

2006-12-31T20:31:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my final paper (which is actually way overdue), I get to stay at home on New Year's Eve (please note the sarcasm). I also have my final test the day after tomorrow, so, yeah, going somewhere might not be the best idea. But hey, instead of studing, I'm preparing for the party tonight. What party, you ask? Why it's the biggest event in town. The cream of the crop. The one where all the coolest people will be begging to be invited. It's none other than the Bring Your Friends, Don't Forget Your Dog, Your Own Meat and Sausage All Night Barbeque New Year Soiree! After this lousy year, I do feel the right to have a little R&R. What better time than New Year's Eve and two days before my final test. Just twenty people sitting around, chatting, all night long. Can't wait!

...Guess I'll study at the party.

Holy Crap! Where's My Internet?

2006-12-28T10:23:00.000-08:00

My internet connection is f**ked up! Just heard the news two days ago that the earthquake in Taiwan busted the underwater cables. Hence, internet connection in Indonesia is creeping along at a snail's pace. The average internet user in Indonesia access foreign websites (mainly US based: Yahoo, Google, etc) everyday. Usually the bandwith goes through Taiwan, then Japan, and the US. But now, it has to go all the way through Australia or via the west line through Europe. Experts said that the repairs could take 2-3 weeks. Dear God, three weeks with this kind of connection?

Resolution

2006-12-23T10:28:00.000-08:00

Here's my new year resolution:

GRADUATE!

that is all.

The Evolution of a Nerd

2006-12-23T06:57:00.000-08:00

Well hello boys and girls of all ages! Step right up! Step right up! And welcome to the wonderful and wacky world of... me! Our first item for today comes from way back in 1995 (or 96, I forgot...). Who is that dashingly handsome young man, you ask? Why, that's none other than yours truly! I have no idea what went on in that little head of mine those days. No fashion sense at all. Geez, look at that mustache! Those sideburns! *gulp* That hairdo! (If that qualifies as a hairdo...) Dear God! I can see now why girls weren't very fond of me those days... . Sheesh!

Up next, 1997. This picture was taken in some museum. (A museum of all places! How much nerdier can one be????) Focus of interest: Those HUMONGOUS glasses!

Nuff laughing, next stop, 2002! Well, as you can see, got luckier with the ladies... except that she's an old and dear friend from a long time ago... so I don't think one could call that fortunate. At least I got rid of that horrible, neglected, never went to a barbershop before mustache. But the hair still stinks.

And finally this is me in 2006...

Okay... okay, geez... . Happy now? Not perfect, but way better. You've come a looong way dude... . Bless you B for the makeover.

Photoshop CS3 - beta!

2006-12-22T04:22:00.000-08:00

Just opened photoshop.com. Finally, Photoshop CS3 is almost out! Native performance on the intel based Macs! I'm sick and tired of using photoshop at a considerably slower speed on the Macbook Pro. You can download the beta here if you like. Considering my connection speed, it'd be best for me if I wait for the full release to come out. (Spring '07, can't wait!). Though, in my opinion as a humble graphic designer, the new CS3 icons is dull. But apparently there's already a buzz going on in the blogging world bout 'em. So I won't blog about it. Check out John Nack on Adobe or Jason Santa Maria.

Me and My Rusty Guitar Fingers

2006-12-22T02:22:00.000-08:00

I've been listening to Depapepe lately. I'm not really a big fan of J-Pop, but this one, I can enjoy. Just two guys with two guitars. Usually the first guy plays the rhythm, while the other bangs on with straightforward melodies. They're really easy on the ears but memorable from the very first time you hear them. Air guitaring and the occasional head banging is not very common when it comes to accoustic pieces, but I'll make an exception for this band. I do agree with you, the name IS stupid. But as soon as you hear their music, it doesn't matter.

That said, I've developed a sudden craving for the 6 strings. It has been almost a year since I last ~~played~~ touched my guitar. Thanks to these guys, yesterday I cleaned up my rusty accoustic, changed the strings, and got iTunes on repeat. The initial plan was to learn those straightforward melodies and copy them. Well, at least that was the plan. Turns out, these fingers are as rusty as those old strings. I never was a great guitarist. No, that would be this guy, but I ain't that bad. Alas, you can't tell by the way I'm playing now. T_T

Hot Stuff!

2006-12-21T08:27:00.000-08:00

I want this! Don't know what I would use it for. Maybe I'd finally get the jogging mood back on if I combine it with technology. These evergrowing flabs really need a complete overhaul. But then again, I just want it cos it's DAMN HOT!

Blog Redesign

2006-12-20T21:27:00.000-08:00

Got bored with blogger's template, so I'm giving my page a makeover. You'll see a couple of changes in a few days. Stop by every now and then.

Damn Straight!

2006-12-14T09:13:00.000-08:00

Calvin, my boy, you don't know how right you are... .

Creativity at its Best

2006-12-03T04:43:00.000-08:00

Lately I've found my very own sanctuary for blogging. Thank God for the invention of Wi-Fi. Now I can poop my ideas (this was an old friend's motto, but it really suits the moment).

Note to self:
NO WEBCAMS WHEN BLOGGING, NO WEBCAMS WHEN BLOGGING, NO WEBCAMS WHEN BLOGGING!

The 5 Most Annoying Places for a Mosquito Bite

2006-12-02T20:27:00.000-08:00

1. On the upper wall of the nasal cavity (that's the the upper wall of the inside of your nose for you who don't speak medically, or don't open wikipedia compulsively for his/her blog :))) ). Try scratching it. Yeah, right now. Easy? Now imagine doing that when there's a swelling. (BTW, you look good with your finger in your nose)
2. Just beneath the eyes. If you scratch it, the swelling gets worse. And suddenly you have the worst plastic surgery ever performed on a human being.
3. On the sole of your foot. You can apply lotions, but try sratching it... . C'mon, humor me, try it.
4. On your tongue. Enough said.
5. On junior... . Yep, good old junior... . FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON'T SCRATCH IT!

Some of them are based on experience. Which one, you said? Number five, you said? No comment, I said.