So, Ms Silverlines has written down a very thoughtful post about us having to be responsible by carrying condoms everywhere, in case we happen to meet and greet a muy caliente stranger, and we just can't resist our hormonal urge.
I wholeheartedly agree with it. I even give more nods to her suggestion that condoms are really multifunctional, not only to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS , but for other purposes as well, such as a PORTABLE WATER BUCKET. Like she said, there is always possibility that one day you are stranded in a deserted island and you need something to contain the water.
Well.
To be honest, Dear, unless you are indeed in a no-man island and somehow decide to have a picnic there, and there's no bottle or thermos to bring the water, and of course no coconut shells on the sand, the latex thingy will be very useful.
Don't get me wrong, I still think it's a brilliant idea. In fact, I'd like underline that condoms have more to offer than it's originally designed for, most of them are as substitutes to, inter alia:
1. Balloons (of course!). How many times we as kids had blown the 25 condoms? Oh okay, I admit I did. In this case, you can also fill the condom with water and we can play water balloon with it!
2. Ziplocks. To fellow Indonesians who may not be so familiar with this term, it's actually a brand for plastic bags with zips used to put your belongings, food, etc. So if you go to a party or buffet dinner, and you want to bring home some delicious satays or cakes, and the host is out of plastic bags, you only need to pull out your condom! Just make sure that you do it indiscreetly and the condom is NEW.
3. Rubberbands. It's totally hot, and your hair adds the heat to the backside of your neck. Take out the condom, pelintir (I don't know the English word for it, LOL) to make it thin and long, tie it around your hair. Simple!
4. Cellphone cover. I had seen it actually before I came here, hehehehe...
And many, many more. It's not recommended, though, as a replacement for plastic nipples. You don't want your babies to grow up too fast, do you?
But anyway, I don't intend to make a serious issue a joke. The number of people with HIV/AIDS is sharply increasing. We have to accept the fact that sermons alone don't prevent people from having unsafe sex. So rather than dwelling with merely moral issues, we should take practical precautions, including installing condom vending machines if necessary (truthfully, I'm a bit doubtful that Indonesian people will be willing to line up to the machine, in public). On top of that, of course, education, education, education.
Update:
Now I remember, pelintir should be twist!
Safe and Sound! ;)
Every Little Thing
It is because the world is so full of suffering,
that your happiness is a gift.
It is because the world is so full of poverty,
that your wealth is a gift.
It is because the world is so unfriendly,
that your smile is a gift.
It is because the world is so full of war,
that your peace is a gift.
It is because the world is in such despair,
that your hope and optimism is a gift.
It is because the world is so afraid,
that your love is a gift *)
Joy could be found in every little thing. Small talks over a cup of coffee or two with good friends. The taxi driver greeting you "Selamat pagi" (yes, in Bahasa!) and helping you cross the street when it seems like you'll be stuck there forever. A first grader whispering to his mom, "Mom, she smells great" in the elevator you are sharing with them. Your friend's puppy jumping onto your lap.
Life is indeed beautiful, when every little thing is treasured :).
*) Quoted from this gifted artist's site.
Garing Dot Com
Waktu menanggapi postingan seorang adik-by-adat yang mengeluh karena sedang kosong ilham menulis (dan merasa suka menyalahkan faktor luar, terutama pekerjaan), saya bilang: tidak usah terlalu kuatir, hal itu memang kerap terjadi. Toh nanti ilham datang sendiri.
Seperti biasa, saya sok tahu dan sok keren. Soalnya saya juga suka sebal kalau sekian lama tidak membuat tulisan baru, meskipun saya tidak merasa perlu mempertanyakan faktor penyebabnya. Sering di kepala muncul beberapa hal yang rasanya ingin dituangkan dalam rangkaian kalimat, tapi begitu sejumlah kata diketikkan, saya langsung mati gaya. Alhasil draft berjubel tanpa ditindaklanjuti. Persis seperti dulu, waktu saya baru memperoleh hadiah ulang tahun sebuah mesin tik: sejumlah "cerpen" lahir, tanpa ada satupun yang pungkas. Biasa, teraspirasi pada Anita Cemerlang.
Di samping kosong inspirasi, hal lain yang suka membuat saya gemas adalah kalau sudah merasa diri garing. Tidak bisa menyusun kalimat yang membuat saya terkagum-kagum sendiri *narsisisme akut cenderung megalomaniak*, tidak bisa menanggapi kawan bicara saya secara tempelak, tidak bisa mengusulkan hal-hal baru yang tidak terpikirkan orang lain sebelumnya. Kalau sudah begitu kadang-kadang jadi pengen jambak-jambak rambut (lebai, lebai).
Kalau saya pikir-pikir lagi (hal yang langka, karena saya jarang berpikir, hehehehe...), sepertinya kebetean dan kemerasagaringan ini erat kaitannya dengan standar proyeksi kepribadian yang saya susun tanpa metode ilmiah blas. Tentunya proyeksi kepribadian saya dong. Maksud saya kurang lebih: kumpulan indikator yang saya pakai untuk menilai diri sendiri, setidaknya untuk beberapa aspek. Padahal belum tentu relevan dan nyambung dengan yang dipakai orang lain untuk mengukur seberapa mengesankannya saya.
Naaahhh... yang begini ini bikin saya jadi bertanya-tanya. Standar itu saya buat berdasarkan pemahaman saya mengenai diri saya sendiri, atau berdasarkan keinginan memproyeksikan citra tertentu mengenai saya ke orang lain?
Democrats Take Over the House!
The Democrats finally took over the House in this midterm election.
Something that many have been calculating, but nobody really had the gut to predict the result.
The Iraq war has turned out to be the major winning issue.
People can't just bear more casualties. False hopes. Broken promises.
Patriotism and faith that eventually peace will prevail are no longer enough to build confidence on si vis pacem, para bellum.
Ah, and women made their remarks:
Hillary Clinton got more then seventy percent votes.
And Nancy Pelosi became the first female Speaker of the House.
Guys, now please just stop all these demonstrations. Bush Jr. has just been hit hard and needs to take a rest. Give him some mercy.
Yang Tidak Bermutu Dinihari
Sudah beberapa saat sebenarnya saya pengen nulis tentang ini. Gara-gara baca curahan hati seorang teman maya (tepatnya: sesama penulis maya). Tentang luka. Tentang ketidakjujuran. Hm, bisa jadi kejujuran yang disampaikan dengan cara tidak langsung, walau sama-sama menyakitkan. Tentang ketidaktahuan yang menikam. Atau barangkali ketidakmauan mendengar kata hati? Berusaha menipu diri sendiri? Berupaya meyakinkan diri bahwa semuanya bisa diatasi?
Padahal semuanya sudah di depan mata, selama ini. Coba kita merekam omongan kita sendiri waktu ngobrol dengan sohib/saudara/teman chatting/dll. dan mendengar kembali. Kita pasti mengakui bahwa kita yang terlalu bodoh, buta, naif, atau tidak mau tahu. Kebenaran memang sering pahit. Dan mahal, Sayang. Apalagi kalau pakai tiket penerbangan internasional.
Ketika saya membaca tulisan seseorang yang mengaku pernah jadi pihak yang, ehm, mengkhianati (emang rasanya istilah ini dangdut banget, tapi apa dong padanan katanya yang rada keren dikit?) saya sempat berharap akan memperoleh penjelasan kenapa.. er.. pengkhianatan bisa terjadi. Ternyata saya kecele, soalnya yang bersangkutan cuma menulis bahwa dia tahu itu salah, dan dia berusaha tidak melakukannya lagi. Well, mungkin memang ini bukan sesuatu yang bisa dijelaskan ya.
Namun juga bukan berarti jadi justifikasi untuk tidak berkata terus terang seandainya rasa itu memang sudah hilang kan? Karena tidak ada yang salah kok pada ketiadaan rasa. Lebih baik kau menghadapi air matanya, sesenggukannya, pertanyaan-pertanyaannya, kepalan tangannya (eh, kalau ini emang rada menakutkan deng!) daripada dia mengetahuinya dari orang lain (walau mungkin kau akan memilih yang terakhir). Kalau kau tidak berterus terang karena ragu akan perasaanmu sendiri? Haduh, you can't have your cake and eat it too! Jangan minta terlalu banyak ah :). Dengan seorang mantan, saya pernah menyepakati waktu break dua minggu, memberikan kesempatan padanya untuk berpikir. Ketika akhirnya toh dia bilang bahwa dia tidak bisa terus lagi, saya memang sedih, tapi saya sangat menghargai keterusterangannya. Pertemanan tetap jalan, bahkan saya sempat-sempatnya memperkenalkannya dengan teman saya yang lain. Nah, kalo gini enak kan? :)
Halah, lagi-lagi soal ini. Maaf ya kalau terkesan menyudutkan satu jender. Eh, saya pernah juga loh jadi yang harus memutuskan. Maksudnya, bukan memutuskan karena dipaksa keadaan (misalnya: sudah sering dicuekin sehingga gak ada jalan lain selain putus), tapi karena memang ilfil. Berat memang, apalagi kalau yang harus diputuskan pada dasarnya baik dan sebelumnya tidak ada masalah berarti. Tapi akan lebih jahat lagi kalau saya melanjutkan hubungan dengannya secara de jure sembari mencari-cari kesempatan lari, menyakiti hatinya bolak balik supaya dia benci saya -- walah, saya bakal kehilangan teman dong! Dan saya paling gak suka kehilangan teman.
Moral tulisan ini? Gak ada. Cuma calakadut gak bermutu dinihari, sementara saya masih harus lembur mengerjakan tugas kantor. Lagian siapa bilang saya bermoral? Saya kan cuma seorang masochist in denial, hihihi...
Borat: The Next Peace Ambassador
A few reasons why Borat could be nominated the next Peace Ambassador:
One, he's so plain funny. With that naivity and unmoved expression.
Second, he's a reporter from Kazakhstan who practically insults Kazakhstan, and yet the spokesperson of the Kazakhstan Embassy in DC still hopes that his movie will bring people closer to Kazakhstan (frankly speaking, I become wondering whether Kazakhstanis are all like that).
Third, he's an anti-Semitic Jewish (the actor who plays him, that's it). The Arabs will love him, and so do other anti-Israel crowds. And yet no words from the Israeli government (or Jewish community) are against him.
Four, he makes Americans a joke with this movie, actually makes money out of it, and it is loved by the Americans! And the rest of the world, undoubtedly (with a few exceptions of movie critics, of course).
I'm thinking of the first steps to campaign for his candidature.
PS: Pic is taken from here.
Denzeeeeeeeelllll...!!!!!
I watched Oprah interviewing Denzel Washington yesterday.
I've always loved the man, and after Oprah my affection for him is even stronger.
I observed his thin eyebrows (I suspect they've been plucked! And I, frankly, couldn't stand men who look after themselves too much!), his big nose, and his beautiful eyes -- nothing really special. Physically he may have been that guy behind the cash register counter in CVS. I guess it's his charisma -- or whatever they will call that thing.
I guess it's my unconditional love for him, though obviously it's not mutual, wakakkakakkak...
Oh well, it would've been more perfect if both Denzel and Mr. Colin Powell were interviewed together! *dreamy eyes, floating hope*