Sunday, March 29, 2009

too many funerals.
i went to see dennis aunt in a coma last week, she had a stroke. 2 days later she died. so i was at his aunts for 3 days pretty much. his cousin, the only child, now has no parents. he is 21, his dad died a long time ago and now his mom is gone, the funeral was so sad, i cried. they wrap up the body and then the family comes to say goodbye and his cousin just kissed her forehead for so long, crying so hard, and it was heartbreaking.

today his uncle died. i feel so sad for him and his family. he says he is okay but i cant help but feel completely so sad. im not sure if i will go to this funeral. i dont think so.

anyways. at his aunts funeral i met this girl, 17 years old, the daughter of their housecleaner. its very strange for a teenager to have a job, but she does, because 1 year ago her dad passed away and they dont have any money, she had to drop out of school and not graduate. she only has one year left. i want to pay for her. its only 15 canadian a month, im gonna do it for sure.

so i was thinking, this is a very very small price and denni lives in a poor neighbourhood and im positive there are kids tthat cant afford school, so if anyone has a sweet nice heart and can spare 15-20 a month let me know, and i will see what i can do with these kids. i would and im sure they would appreciate like crazy, i could take photos of the kids and get them to write letters to you and stuff.

yeah, i think thats the least i could do to help. so if anyone else wants to PLEASE let me know.

other than that, im good, happy, swell. not coming home in september and will be staying another year. but ilove and miss you guys like crazy...
much love

Friday, March 13, 2009

i go to bali and lombok in 3 months with 3 wicked people

I will surf, bungee jump, induldge in foreign food (home food), get a bad ass tan, climb a volcano, relax, wear a bikini. Also in june the tattoo artist comes back to medan, which equals death, hell, lots of pain, colouring of my tattoo.

okay scary stuff. my place has been broken into 4 times in 1 month, so we finally went to the police. we were there for 5 hours, and got 2 stories written about us in the newspaper and also saw pictures of dead bodies ( a maid burnt her owners house down with everyone inside.) later we realized the newspaper stories said that we suspected the security who we see daily, who are part of the mafia, gang, you know, people who do bad things to people. so we moved out of our house to dennis, feared for a lives, then ona, dennis sister, knows the head of mafia so we met with him. "im a gangster in this city" he claims, i mean, he is. definitely is damn bad ass. he told us that basically its his job to keep us safe and nobody will touch us or come close to us, that people are watching and protecting us and if anyone fucks with us, they will fuck with him, and trust me, you wouldnt wanna fuck with him. pretty much the most bad ass person ive ever met.

after this horrible, stressfilled, long weekend, i get a call on tuesday from indah telling me that her brother has passed away. sigh. dear life, may you please throw me something sweet instead of all these lemons?

oh, good news. i got my kebaya from dennis cousins wedding, and its purdy and the skirt is too big though because i have been going to the gym and weigh 127 lbs. BAH. um i had something else to say but ive lost my mind.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

I am putting stars beside the ones i agree with

You know you've been here too long if -

• The footprints on the toilet seat are your own. *

• You no longer wait in line, but immediately go to the head of the queue *

• You stop at the bottom of the escalator to plan your day. HAHA.

• You habitually punch all the buttons as you leave the lift.

• You no longer expect any lifts to function logically. *

• It has become exciting to see if you can get into the lift before anybody can get out. *

• You're willing to pay to use a toilet you wouldn't go to within a kilometre of at home. *

• It is no longer surprising that the only decision made at a meeting is the time and venue of the next meeting. *

• You rank the decision making abilities of your staff by how long it takes them to reply "up to you mister".

• You no longer wonder how someone making US$200 per month can drive a Mercedes. *

• You accept the fact that you have to queue to get your number for the next queue. *

• You have considered buying a motorcycle for the next family car. *

• You automatically switch on your emergency flashing lights when it starts to rain.

• You switch on all the lights and keep your headlights on main beam as soon as it gets dark.

• You accept without question the mechanic's analysis that your car is "broken" and that it will cost you a lot of money to get it fixed.

• You think the Proton and Kijang are stylish and well-built cars. *

• If when listening to the pilot prove he can't speak English, you no longer wonder if he can understand the air traffic controllers. *

• You find it saves time to stand and retrieve your cabin baggage while the plane is on final approach. *

• You walk to the pub with your arm around your mate. *

• You walk into a five-star hotel lobby unshaven and in jogging shorts, ratty t-shirt and flip-flops, without worrying what the management might think. **

• You answer the telephone with "Hello" more than two times.

• You expect at least three waiters to be standing by to take your order. **

• You are quite content to repeat your order six times in a restaurant that only has four items on the menu. **

• You regard it as part of an adventure when the waiter exactly repeats your order, and then the cook makes something completely different. **

• A T-bone steak and rice sounds just fine.

• You believe everything you read in the local newspaper. *

• You habitually ignore traffic signals, stop signs and copy-watch peddlers. *

• You instinctively do the exact opposite of what the parking assistant tells you.

• You're not surprised when three men with a ladder show up to change a light bulb. *

• You're not surprised when repair men call and expect you to provide them with tools and materials. **

• You think it is normal to wait six days to get your laundry back or pay a 50% surcharge for same day service. *

• Taxi drivers understand you.

• You own a rice cooker. *

• You consider that 5 kb/s is a pretty good download speed.

• You can shake your hands almost perfectly dry before wiping them on your pants. *

• You look at a pin-up photo of Demi Moore and think that she's rather unattractive.

• When crossing a busy street you believe that a limp wrist motion with your right arm creates a force field that repels oncoming traffic. *

• Suitable family entertainment for a Friday night is to dress the whole family in dark clothing and dash back and forth across Jalan Iskandarmuda and other busy streets.

• You keep a supply of plain brown envelopes in your desk drawer.

• Due to selective memory you honestly believe you could return to the western world.

• You understand all of the above references!

WE WROTE THESE::

... you find wearing a jacket/jumper backwards when riding your bike makes sense and you can see the benefits. *

... you start taking handfuls of sweets instead of being polite and only taking one. *

... a curry-stained t-shirt, pyjama bottoms and plastic flip-flops are a perfectly acceptable outfit for eating out. *

it feels normal when angkots fill up with the engine still runnin...with a lit clove ciggy in their mouths **

in a traffic jam, you start beeping your horn the second the light turns green (or a few seconds before if you're on a countdown).....and your horn sounds like the mario bros theme tune. **

You believe that drinking water after it has been shaken will make you sick

you go to a guest house point to a rat and ask, "is that a rat?" and they say, "nope." Then you inquire a second time while pointing and they reply, "Oh that!? Thats nothing." as the rat runs down the drain

the times you are called mister out weigh the times i am addressed with a feminine term **

riding a motorcycle with no helmet seems perfectly safe. **

-when you are sick, wind is always the problem, masuk angin **

-people wearing sweaters in plus 30 weather is completely, and totally acceptable. **

- you wad up your bank notes into tight balls as it allows you to throw them greater distances and with more accuracy when paying for various services **

your pee while you are brushing your teeth and they both go into the same drain pipe.... Or hole in the bathroom floor. *


*You know youve been here too long when u think using toilet paper is disgusting, water is waaaaaaay better!!!!!! **

... you've forgotten what a real cheesecake should look like, let alone how it should taste, and are happy to accept a swiss roll stuffed with stale grated cheese. **

... 'meat' is a perfectly acceptable explanation for what those dark blobs floating in your noodle soup are.

... a pizza-flavoured donut seems reasonable, as does sweet glazed pastry stuffed with potato curry. **

You fatalistically accept the fact that you have become an expert in Calls to Prayer; listening for quality of tone, clarity, vigor, volume, etc. while putting more ice cubes in your beer. **

and you use the sundown call at around 6.30 as the signal to close your doors/windows as the mosquitoes will be coming in soon. **

you forget what a pavement/sidewalk is **