Another Victoria's Secrets

I went to Bandung by Baraya Travel on 28 March by 9 p.m. last Friday after finished my job that day. It was a long trip tho it was only Jkt-Bdg. I arrived in Bandung by 12 and was fetched by Bent and Hizkia (I live in Hizkia's home in Jakarta now. He's my dearest cousin tho he's just 15 years old). When we reached home there were 5 packages of sushi they bought earlier. So we had a little sushi feast until 2.30 a.m. in our terrace.

I woke up by 6 a.m. the next day and went to CCF to attend my french course that finished by 12 p.m. When I reached home there was Oma who came with Aunt Dewi that very morning. I was surprised but also felt excited cuz it had been a while since the last time Aunt Dewi came to Bandung.

I was exhausted so I took nap until around 4 p.m. and had a little chat with my aunt before she left to church for 5 p.m. mass. Then I went to PVJ with Bent and Hizkia but we had to change the tire first so we came a bit late for dinner with Ester and family cuz we had to fetched Irma too.

It’s been a while since I last touched my computer, not to mention this blog. It just happened so fast, I didn’t even have time to think. It started last Lundi (3/3) when Vera offered me job at Metric Kitchen as Marketing Support. I did mon resumé online to Cayenne.

So by the time I was called for interview á 1 heures aprés midi, Cayenne called for interview on Mercredi (6/3) so I postponed the job from Metric and départ á Jakarta the next day. I did the interview in Cayenne for Store Representative position and it went well but I also entered my resumé to another furniture and interior company (shouldn't mention any name about it here, sorry) and on that very day I did the drawing test, got interviewed and accepted to work there.

It was surprising since people who sat around me had to come back in few days, etc, but I got that special exception cuz I got interviewed by the owner. It was kinda shocking cuz I wasn’t prepared at all and my cours de la france isn’t finished yet. And then Cayenne called and said I was accepted too there. It had me confused for a moment but I’m sure God had made Cayenne pended my recruitment so this other company could hire me. I believe this is God’s plan.

So I started my work in Darmawangsa Square, South Jakarta, by Mardi (12/3) and got my own desk for the first time (can’t count DCM cuz it was only for a month). Basically my job desc is simple: get used with all type of classic furniture they have, remember those names and types, and contact the purchasing department and warehouse. It’s quite simple but difficult at first cuz they have 4 floors full of furniture, accessories and chandeliers (what I mean with full is REALLY really full!) and full of employees. There are sooooo many of them!

(A)ccepts you as you are
(B)elieves in "you"
(C)alls you just to say "HI"
(D)oesn't give up on you
(E)nvisions the whole of you
(F)orgives your mistakes
(G)ives unconditionally
(H)elps you
(I)nvites you over
(J)ust "be" with you
(K)eeps you close at heart
(L)oves you for who you are
(M)akes a difference in your life
(N)ever Judges
(O)ffers support
(P)icks you up
(Q)uiets your fears
(R)aises your spirits
(S)ays nice things about you
(T)ells you the truth when you need hear it
(U)nderstands you
(V)alues you
(W)alks beside you
(X)- plain things you don't understand
(Y)ells when you won't listen and....
(Z)aps you back to reality..

Seorang anak laki-laki kecil bertanya kepada ibunya, "Mengapa engkau menangis?"
"Karena aku seorang wanita," kata sang ibu kepadanya.
"Aku tidak mengerti," kata anak itu.
Ibunya hanya memeluknya dan berkata, "Dan kau tak akan pernah mengerti."

Kemudian anak laki-laki itu bertanya kepada ayahnya, "Mengapa ibu suka menangis tanpa alasan?"
"Semua wanita menangis tanpa alasan," hanya itu yang dapat dikatakan oleh ayahnya.

Anak laki-laki kecil itu pun lalu tumbuh menjadi seorang laki-laki dewasa,
namun tetap ingin tahu mengapa wanita menangis.
Akhirnya ia menghubungi Tuhan, dan ia bertanya,
"Tuhan, mengapa wanita begitu mudah menangis?"

Tuhan berkata:
"Ketika Aku menciptakan seorang wanita, ia diharuskan untuk menjadi seorang yang istimewa. Aku membuat bahunya cukup kuat untuk menopang dunia; namun, harus cukup lembut untuk memberikan kenyamanan.

"Aku memberikannya kekuatan dari dalam untuk mampu melahirkan anak dan menerima penolakan yang seringkali datang dari anak-anaknya.

"Aku memberinya kekerasan untuk membuatnya tetap tegar ketika orang-orang lain menyerah, dan mengasuh keluarganya dengan penderitaan dan kelelahan tanpa mengeluh.

"Aku memberinya kepekaan untuk mencintai anak-anaknya dalam setiap keadaan, bahkan ketika anaknya bersikap sangat menyakiti hatinya.

"Aku memberinya kekuatan untuk mendukung suaminya dalam kegagalannya dan melengkapi dengan tulang rusuk suaminya untuk melindungi hatinya.

"Aku memberinya kebijaksanaan untuk mengetahui bahwa seorang suami yang baik takkan pernah menyakiti isterinya, tetapi kadang menguji kekuatannya dan ketetapan hatinya untuk berada di sisi suaminya tanpa ragu.

"Dan akhirnya, Aku memberinya air mata untuk diteteskan. Ini adalah khusus miliknya untuk digunakan kapan pun ia butuhkan.

"Kau tahu:
Kecantikan seorang wanita bukanlah dari pakaian yang dikenakannya, sosok yang ia
tampilkan, atau bagaimana ia menyisir rambutnya.

"Kecantikan seorang wanita harus dilihat dari matanya, karena itulah pintu hatinya -tempat di mana cinta itu ada."

[the birthday mom and her husband]

I went to Eye 2 Eye by 7 p.m. last night for Ester's birthday. There were also Boyank, her husband; Hayden, their son; and friends such as Livia-Ian, Lidya-Alung, and Irma. We celebrated Ester’s 24th birthday casually but the cake was extremely delicious. She ordered it in Casa de Porto, where une française made the frambozen cake and her husband delivered it.


[Aunt Irma and Hayden]

Rika, Ester’s dear friend, came late with her son Raver and the party finished by 9 p.m., a little too early for us but kinda late for those who have kids. It was kinda funny cuz there were two of us who got kids already. Raver's 15 months year old while Hayden is only 3 months. We just played with the kids and talked about kids mostly that night and it was kinda weird since we usually talk about other lighter stuff.


[Rika and Raver]

Apparently, Irma had something for us in Yanto’s car so I, Livia and Ian followed Irma to Spice Box, 4 houses to the left. Irma gave us each 2 plastics of Palembang chips. Then we entered the restaurant to greet ‘Happy Birthday’ to Pak Yudi, Yanto’s boss. There were his family, included his wife Stella, and his new sister-in-law Andina who happened to be my and Livia’s schoolmate. There were also Dina’s sister and Teddy. We did the chit-chat til 9.40 p.m. before we went home.

~Bryan Adams~

When you love someone - you'll do anything
You'll do all the crazy things that you can't explain
You'll shoot the moon - put out the sun
When you love someone

You'll deny the truth - believe a lie
There'll be times that you'll believe you can really fly
But your lonely nights - have just begun
When you love someone

When you love someone - you'll feel it deep inside
And nothin else can ever change your mind
When you want someone - when you need someone
When you need someone...

When you love someone - you'll sacrifice
You'd give it everything you got and you won't think twice
You'd risk it all - no matter what may come
When you love someone

You'll shoot the moon - put out the sun
When you love someone

“Why?” is the most common question as the reaction when I pronounce my comeback with Mario. Well, it took me months to answer this, too, cuz it was so complicated to me, dividing the reality with dreams I have. But in short sentence, I’m back together with Mario after 3 months separated because he offered me more happiness and love than what I got when I was single.


[Alex Willy and me in Roemah Nenek]

It looked promising and after I said yes, I know I took the right decision. He made me feel most happy although the last 3 months were so delightful for me. I know this cuz I’ve been hanging out with so many old and new people in the last 3 months (take Luppi I met on 08/02/08 in Ciwalk and Alex Willy on the same night at Roemah Nenek) and Mario is still the best guy for me.


[Mum, Clemy, Dad, and me]


[Rian and me at Taman Anggrek Mall]

I decided to choose him again after went to Jakarta last Sunday (10/02/08) with my family. I met Rian instead of Mario in Taman Anggrek Mall and after just 3 hours of conversations we went back home to Bandung but I got this huge feeling of missing Mario so, yeah, I took the chance to get back with him.


[ready to compete in L-Men of the Year 2008]

Mario came to Bandung with Piter and Eko from Jakarta to join L-Men competition in Majesty, Saturday morning. He lost, but it was nothing cuz he wasn’t well-prepared this time.

After that we had lunch at Warung Lela, in Rancakendal, Northern Bandung. Then we took the guests to my home to get some rest before went to Mario’s house to take baths. We fetched Diana, Eko’s friend and had dinner at Neo Calista, the sponsor of L-Men Competition, and met Mario’s friend Darwin who got in the big 10.


[me, Mario and Piter at Neo Calista]


[Diana and Eko]

We continued the night to PVJ and chilled at Mocha Blend. We met so many people there and we went home by 12 a.m. We couldn’t wake up too early so our morning started by 10.30 and we headed to buy some food and had lunch at Kingsley batagor. We met Ester and Hayden there before we moved to Ngopi Doeloe at Jl. Hasanuddin.


[Mario, me and Ester at Ngopi Doeloe]


[Piter and Eko, Mario's friends]


[Ester and her baby Hayden]

The group had some rest at my home before they start the trip to Jakarta by 4.30. It was so nice to have Mario back. Piter and Eko were also fun to be with and I’m happy that they like me so much they treat me as if I was their best friend, too. I feel so ‘reaccepted’ both in Mario’s friends circle and in his family. I really don’t know what’s waiting for me in the future but I’m so glad I have my sweet Mario back in my life.

~a really great message from a guy friend for us girls~



--Guys hate sluts even though they have sex with them!
(oh yeah..you're not "popular" if you've slept with more
than 6 guys..you're a HOE)

--Guys may be flirting around all daybut before they go
to sleep, they always think about the girl they truly care about.

--Guys go crazy over a girl's smile.

--Guys will do anything just to get you to notice him

--Guys hate it when you talk about your ex-boyfriend or ex love-interest.

--Boyfriends need to be reassured often that they're still loved.

--Don't talk about your guy friends to your boyfriend.

--Guys get jealous easily.

--Guys are more emotional than they'd like people to think.

--Giving a guy a hanging message like "You know what?!
..uh...nevermind.." would make him jump to a conclusion
that is farfrom what you are thinking.
And he'll assume he did something wrong and he'll obsess
about it trying to figure it out.

--Guys are good flatterers when courting but they usually
stammer when they talk to a girl they really like.

--A usual act that proves that the guy likes you is when he teases you.

--Guys love you more than you love them if they are serious in your relationships.

--Guys think WAY too much. One small thing a girl does,
even if she doesn't notice it can make the guy think about it
for hours, trying to figure out what it meant.

--Guys seek for advice from girls not other guys. Because most
guys think alike, so if one guy's confused, then we're all confused.

--When a guy asks you to leave him alone, he's just actually
saying, "Please come and listen to me."

--If a guy starts to talk seriously, listen to him. It doesn't happen
that often, so when it does, you know something's up.

--If your best guy friend seems to avoid you or is never around
when you're with your boyfriend, he's probably jealous and likes you.

--When a guy tells you that you are beautiful, don't say you aren't.
It makes them want to stop telling you because they don't want you to disagree with them.

--When a guy looks at you for longer than a second, he's definitely
thinking something.

--Guys don't like girls who punch harder than they do.

--A guy has more problems than you can see with your naked eyes.

--Don't be a snob. Guys can be intimidated and give up easily.

--Guys talk about girls more than girls talk about guys.

--Guys hate rejection, but they hate being led on even more.

--If you are going to reject a guy, just do it. Don't say they are
like a brother or just good friends, it just hurts even more.
Tell them that you aren't interested in a relationship and they will respect you.

--Guys really think that girls are strange and have
unpredictable decisions and are MAD confusing but somehow
are drawn even more to them.

--When a guy sacrifices his sleep and health just to be with you,
he really likes you and wants to be with you as much as possible.

I went to two wedding parties last week. The first one was Alex and Berlise's wedding; the biggest and most luxurious wedding party I've ever attended (not to mentioned the groom's sister's wedding last year) but seriously, this family really like to treat people. The father, Mr. Iwan Santosa, is a famous person in Catholic church and as far as I know, he knows almost ALL Catholics in Bandung.

Just like the last year's wedding (Alex's sister's wed), it was held in Sabuga with the marvellous decoration inside and out (in the main room and also the hall). They invited more than 10,000 people I guess cuz the building was so full of people it looked like a concert with formal dresses.

I got there with my siblings Ben and Clemy, and my best friends Jeremy and Alex. We came by our car and parked it in UPT ATAS and got a car dropped us to the main building. The decoration and everything was similar with the previous wedding which was full of soft cloths and full of flowers, but this one's more beautiful, more prefect and more interesting.

The food was appealing: beef barbecue, kambing guling, baso tahu, sushi, salmon, peking duck, etc.. We 'worked' in group so we could eat all kinds of food there without wasting too much time on queueing.

But the program inside the main room was far more interesting! The MC were a beautiful lady (whose name I forgot but worked for the previous wed too) and Tantowi Yahya. Last year they invited Krisdayanti to perform a solo. But this year, they invited three singers as well; the country singer Tantowi Yahya, the mellow Delon and... the energic Agnes Monica. What a concert-like wedding!

They really do like treating people. They gave away door prizes such as digicams, handphones, and even a motorcycle which were gave thru a 'game' of 'Super Deal or No Deal' which was quite entertaining. And every invitation got a blue man's T-shirt as souvenirs.

By the way I also met my best friends Irma-Yanto, LS-Ian, Audry and other friends there. Seems like almost all of my best friends were there. It was a very incredible wedding indeed.

But that was a wedding of the groom and bride I don't know. I just know the father of the groom (who is my parents' friend) and the bride's brother who appeared to be Andrey Toge, Ian's friend. On Sunday I was invited to another wedding of my friends; Vera and Handry.

I came to Vera's widodareni party on Saturday night at Eastern Restaurant in Istana Plaza with Jeremy, Delia, Erwin, Vincent, Odhien and Reza. She only invited us, her family, and her best friends from Tasik. We had good time chat with Vera's sister Vina and brothers Tommy and Kevin. But Kevin was the one who did almost all the talk that nite.

Then the wedding party itself was held in Istana Muara on Sunday evening. I came after work (on Sunday!) with Jeremy as usual and met our other friends Erwin, Shirly, Delia, Laura, Vicky Y, Atika, Odhien, Reza, Diana, Yuma, Vincent, Syaeful, Johan and Sonya the model.

I also met my old schoolmates Tutur, Jeffry 'Homo', Andri 'Babeh', Sanny, Yuliana, Astrid, Melissa, Della, Paulin, Okky, Chika, etc. It was so great it felt like a little reunion. There were also Mario's friends Tengkey, Irwan, Bobo, Pungky, Adi, Vick, Andru 'Grunge', Iwan, etc. I was quite excited to see them all after some time.

So, have a happy marriage guys! I hope this will be a very good start of your happy new lifes. Two hearts becoming one. How beautiful is it? I was touched cuz after all, I knew the couple even before they started hooking up. I knew a bit of their story and I knew the beginning.

It came to me a bit of question: when will my turn come? But hey, I still have time to enjoy my single life now so I'll just enjoy it to the fullest. I'm so happy that some of my friends had started new lives with their spouses. I hope when it will come to me, I'd have the most perfect couple to the end.

My Dad always told me that we could never measure our wealth by money but by our friends.
I'm sure our friendship has made me rich!!!
Tiny but wonderful seeds of blessings are sprinkled on earth each day...
and I just caught one that's so nice and true... And it's you!

I may have forgotten to say that I care. I may have failed to open up and share,
but though no words have been spoken, my promise of friendship won't be broken.
Time and distance are important between friends. When a friend is in your heart, they remain there forever.
I may be busy, but I assure you, you are always in my heart!

Friends are like the walls of a house. Sometimes they hold you up, sometimes you lean on them. But sometimes, it's enough to know they're just standing by.
If all my friends were to jump off a bridge, I wouldn't jump with them;
I'd be at the bottom to catch them.

One tree can start a forest; one smile can start a friendship.
One touch can show you care; one friend can make life worth living for.
A smile makes us look younger...while friends make us feel stronger... and they make us enjoy life.

True Friends always pop up to say Hello
True Friends don't Care if you're a lil' different
True Friends never fight like cats and dogs
True Friends will drive you anywhere!!!

True Friends let everyone come along
True Friends don't laugh at you when you get new glasses
True Friends help you up when you're down...
And True Friends never let you do something you'll regret when you wake up the next morning!

[anonymous]

I invited my best friends to my house last Saturday. My parents and little sister were gone to Jakarta so the house was kinda empty. I usually go to Jakarta with mum, with or without any plan (cuz I love going to Jakarta) but I cancelled Jakarta cuz my client asked me to stand by in Bandung just by Friday night.

So I planned the party that Saturday morning cuz I thought I’ll be bored for the next 3 days. I don’t have a car and I wasn’t in the mood for going anywhere so I just invited the crowd over.

Ester, Boyank and their child Hayden came first by around 4 and we got the food prepared for BBQ that night. They did the shopping before and mostly the planners of the party. I just played with 2 months old Hayden for a while.


[Hayden and Aunt Victoria]

Alex came around 6 and we watched She’s The Man on TV. Hours passed by and well, we started to starve so we started the BBQ ‘party’ just the 4 of us with my brother Bent (it’s Party of Five, lol). The rest of the people came by 9 just after we finished.


[the guys who cooked: Alex and Boyank]

It was kinda sucks cuz they came more than 3 hours late and let us be bored. But I couldn’t blame them, I called them the last minute invitations by the way, so I shouldn’t ask too much. I still appreciated their arrivals cuz Irma was depended on Yanto and he came late from Jakarta (blame the traffic jam) and Livia wasn’t really in the mood and she wasn’t gonna come (she arrived in her pyjamas and was so ready to sleep). So I was so glad when they finally made it.


[Yanto prepared the meal for Irma]


[romantic dinner for two]

The ‘party’ ended with card plays that nite. We were divided into two groups: capsah group and Rummikub group (it’s a rummy tile game). Definitely I wasn’t in the capsah group cuz I’m very poor in that game. I, Irma, Boyank and Bent played rummikub while Ester, Alex, Livia and Yanto played capsah. Alex went home by 12 but the rest of the party stayed over that nite.


[ester and her sleeping baby in swinger]


[and it's my turn to swing]

We continued playing the Rummikub til around 3 a.m. then we started to try to sleep. I, Irma and Livia shared a single bed together. They all wanted to try my bed curtain (a.k.a. kelambu) so we couldn’t make any movement and were just talking and laughing till 5 a.m. and finally we could sleep when we move to the extra bed. Livia stayed sleeping on my bed while I shared the extra bed with Irma, it was a lot spacious btw.


[the one who wants a baby so much]

We woke up by 9 when Irma said she was going home cuz she has a lot of things to do at home. Then Ester and family went home too. There were just me, Livia and Bent left. We spent all day watching cable TV and just took baths by 5 p.m. It was the laziest day ever for us.

Happy New Year 2008 everyone! I’m back!!
I made some resolution for the new year but basically I'll be a new person, with new good habits and new job.

Here's my 2008 resolutions. In this year I will:
1. Build, develop, and expand my business the best I can,
2. Be the BEST interior designer they can ask,
3. Earn money and pay for my self,
4. Be someone who can be depended on for anyone in need,
5. Be more charity,
6. Be the light to my surroundings, no matter how dark it is.


Btw I went to Bali for the end of 2007 and below here’s the chronology:

I went to church for 7 a.m. mass with my family minus Ben then we headed to the airport and met Jeanny. This is my second trip to Bali with Jeanny (the first one was in 2002 with school) and this time I knew only one of her friends; Peking but the other 9 were new friends to me: Ronny, Fendy, Ferry, Dhanny, Wei2, Andre, Aay and Like. Like is Dhanny’s girlfriend.

We went to Bali by 10.40 a.m. Sriwijaya flight and transitted at Surabaya for 30 minutes. We arrived in Bali by 1.30 p.m. local time (an hour ahead Javanese time) and had lunch Pecel Bu Tinuk but some of the group ate pork at some near restaurant. Then we went to The Ritz-Carlton by a L300 car we rented and the driver was very kind.

There, Peking, Ferry and Ronny had a water spa for $ 40 and the rest of us waited for them for more than 2 hours taking tour around the hotel and pictures on great spots. It was fun, the hotel’s exterior and landscape were superb but we got bored so before the 3 guys finished their selfish treat (especially Peking’s for it was his main purpose going to Bali) so we waited by the pool side and finally the lobby.

Then we went to Jimbaran to have dinner and it was okay. The food was great, we ordered lots of kerapu fish, prawn, crab, and kangkung but it tasted nice, and the price was quite reasonable it was Rp 860,000.- for 11 hungry people. Then we headed to our hotel at Denpasar but we stopped by at some surf shop which gave up to 70% discount. I got nothing but I bought a Banana Boat’s Deep Tanning Lotion with only 2 SPF. I thought maybe it would be cool if I get a bit tanned.

Finally, we reached the hotel at Jl. Hayam Wuruk 200, Oranjje Hotel near Renon. Jeanny and I got the room 116, which was quite large for 2 people and pretty clean for the price (Rp 300,000.-/night) but not much to ask since it wasn’t nearly a star hotel. But we slept alright there.