Break the social scene

Anything that has Emily Haines and Leslie Feist in it is a-okay by me. Broken Social Scene is an indie-rock band from Canada that consists of...well a whole lot of people. I'm not kidding. Please do check them out. They're very very worth your while. Their new record entitled 'Forgiveness Rock Record' is like ice cream on a hot sunny day.

Liking this picture a lot

Friday night lights

On the 28th of January 2011, I was stamped "No Longer A Minor". Made me feel, well uhm just dandy, not much different to be honest. As I have stated before, I'm not one to throw big parties but dinner and drinks with a few of my closest friends sounds about right for this particular occasion. Here's how my long merriment night came to be....

Around 1830, me and 5 friends headed out for dinner at the very well-liked and reputable Birdcage located at South Jakarta. Not too far from my place, so we got there in a minor second. The ambience is lovely there, just lovely. Dim lighting and unwinding music puts the per in perfect. Some food are top-rate, but some are just too exorbitant. Though overall, I can say with great assurance that this place is worth your time.

Birdcage

After dinner, talks and jokes the night was still a long journey ahead. For a portion of us that is. We headed out to a secluded bar and grill located at a curve near an infamous international school called La Bodega. The hostess was more than welcoming, in fact she was very very hospitable. Introductions were exchanged. Drinks were drank, darts were thrown, and pools were played. A certain flaming drink were given, compliments of the house of course, thanks to our hospitable hostess. The night was still young, again for a portion of us. At the end of our bodegian stop, there was only three of us left. There was a irrefutable feeling that our night could not have ended there. Following the bill, a decision was made by two words, hot and coffee.

La Bodega

Who has better coffee than the notorious Starbucks? By around 30 minutes after midnight, I had no self strength to stay awake in the long cab ride from one side of town to another. Finally we reached our final destination, Starbucks. The wondrous aroma of fresh ground coffee helped me gather the last of my strength to stay awake. This place was perfect...to sleep in. The sofas were extra comfy and the music was extra weakening. After a few jokes and a few sips of hot coffee, I was wide awake and so were the other two. We had long talks and there was actually a point where someone mentioned about how slow time passes. Little did we know that that was not true. Settling down to the easy nature Starbucks had offered us, we had no intentions of going home, this was before we realized that the sun was about to rise. But even after we checked our blackberries for the time, it was positive that we were not leaving anytime soon. It was no doubt that all of us felt tired and sleepy, but somehow there was an uncanniness in us that did not want to leave that place. At the end of the night, or should I say dawn, I decided that we had overstayed our welcome there. 

Wake-up drink, courtesy of Starbucks.

But all and all, it was a pretty good 12 hours of company. Thank you to those who were with me on that joyous day...and night...and day again.

One-stop shopping haven

I have always had a knack for shopping. You can say I'm a shopaholic. I literally buy stuff that I don't need, which is uhm....good for the economy, right?

Around November of 2009, I heard about a sort-of bazaar entitled "Brightspot Market". I don't remember how I ended up googling them but I did. The first thing I noticed about Brightspot Market was their tagline, "a curated market of all things cool." I must admit I thought it was a bit tacky (no pun intended whatsoever). But it stuck on me. I checked out their website, which had a simple but edgy vibe to it. There was a poster announcing an upcoming Brightspot Market that was going to be held at Plaza Indonesia on December, and it was themed "Christmas Edition". Since I love christmas and shopping, there wasn't a reason that I shouldn't go. Brightspot ran for 4 days, with the first day being a private opening for invites only. I got invites out of luck, cause I randomly sent an email and then I got a a reply telling me that I and a +1 was on the list. Cool right? LOL. So on the day of, I went with a friend of mine. I was very fascinated when I got there and indeed I did a lot of shopping. I have been to every Brightspot Market ever since the christmas edition, oh and if I might add, by invites. Yes, I'm bragging.

The Goods Dept.

Last month, I was going through my twitter timeline and read something about a store that was managed by  the creators of Brightspot Market. No doubt, I had to check it out. I'm lame like that, I guess. Anyways, I did check it out. The store, "The Goods Dept.." is located at Plaza Indonesia. The store itself is very well designed. Though the store was uhm....deserted, it had a serene but also intense feel to it. The brands consists of mostly upcoming local ones that's in the "indie" field. Pricing is substantial, I'd say. The Goods Dept. also has a cafe, which I haven't had the chance to try, but definitely will. I do recommend this store for all you indie loving hipsters, and for you that are not, just go check it out. Besides department stores are overrated, The Goods Dept., is curated.

Dearest Griffith Florence Lino

To a good friend of mine.

Dear Giffy,

I can't believe you're leaving the rest of your fellow classmates while it's only 4 months away till graduation.  I can honestly say I hate you for moving away so suddenly. But I'll also say, I will definitely miss you. I've known you since we first started high school, we were in the same class, X4. You were quite the little ball of annoyance. I remember our seniors told you to fix your hair because it was all messy. And so as we became friends we also became extracurricular buddies. Although I never played basketball, you were always supportive and cheerful when they made me play, and for that, I want to thank you. Now I can only wish you well, hope that you get the best out of life, because that's what you deserve. You will be missed by all your friends, especially by Tarakanita class of 2011, and for sure we will miss that weird annoying laugh of yours that sounds like a tire screeching and someone asthmatic. Anyway, I love you my good ol' pal who's moving 3000 kilometers away. Good luck on all your endeavors, on your life journey. I wish you a lifetime of joy, although I'm pretty sure joy is following you.

Lots of love. Janet Jane.

Burlesco

After a night out at Bureau located in South Jakarta, I went home at 2am before realizing that I had a class 9 hours later. I set my alarm clock for 10am, only to wake up an hour earlier due to a major headache. Went downstairs, had breakfast that my sister made. Took an aspirin, showered and then headed out. I had been dying to watch "Burlesque" which stars the infamous Cher and Christina Aguilera, so after a one hour class, I decided that I was going to watch it. And so I did.

I've always been a fan of the whole "burlesque" thing. It seems so glamorous and exciting. So duh, of course I wanted to see this movie. Oh yeah, and Cam Gigandet also stars in this movie, as Christina Aguilera's love interest. And believe me, he is on fire. Loved him since I first saw him in the O.C. as bad boy Kevin Volchok. In Burlesque, he plays a completely different role. Basically Burlesque is about a girl from Iowa who has an amazing hidden talent, then she finds works as a waitress at this Burlesque club on Sunset Boulevard and ya-da ya-da so the story goes. As I see it, Burlesque is a great movie, if you're a musical fan. But if you're just a movie-fan in general well, I have to say don't have high expectations. Movie-wise it's not so great, unfortunately. Behind all the dancing singing and glamorous settings, Burlesque is just another chick-flick.

Wouldn't mind getting a ride from Cam

The GOASTT that haunts

As pretentious as they might or might not be, The Ghost Of A Sabre Tooth Tiger (GOASTT for short) delivers a treat for the ears and the eyes. Their avant-garde music although not the best ever, has it's own spice. And you know what they say, your music defines your fashion, or so I've heard. A brief info on the GOASTT, they consist of two staggering people, Sean Lennon, John Lennon and Yoko Ono's only son and Charlotte Kemp-Muhl an american model who has not only a gorgeous outer physique but also a pretty favorable voice. They are quite the pair, wouldn't you say?

Courtesy of NYLON

Taken from Vanity Fair

Check them out at www.thegoastt.com. I must admit, I'm not a big fan of Charlotte Kemp-Muhl, she's rather annoying if I might say. But who am I to judge, right? Anyways, I've got a major crush on them not only musically but also fashion-wise.

Sable swan

As you can read on the poster "An Extraordinary Intoxicating Masterpiece." And believe you me when I say that that sentence right there, is not an exaggeration. This thriller will send shivers up your spine, well that's what it did to me anyways. I was at the edge of my bed as I watched Natalie Portman running around in a tutu. For those of you who have watched this, you probably understand what I mean. But for those of you who haven't watched this, you should! But definitely don't watch it alone, like I did. Because chances are I'll be getting nightmares. Hmm, nightmares! Just what I need, a sleepless night before I have my math tryouts tomorrow morning..... Oh yes, and don't let me forget to mention the fabulous ballerina-swan-like costumes by Rodarte. Ah-mah-zing.

The kids are very much all right

Part of what makes this movie significant, is the ensemble cast. I personally love them. The Kids Are All Right is about a committed lesbian couple whose life is complicated, sort of. Their children Joni and Laser are portrayed by Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson, another thing I love about this movie. Their half-brother/sister-chemistry is so sweet, not to mention so real. Mark Ruffalo plays Paul, the sperm donor that Jules and Nic chose. Ergo, Paul is Joni and Laser's biological father. This movie is basically about their lives and how family is so important. But enough of that, I'm not gonna tell you everything, see it for yourself. If you're not a cinephile and you don't really like dramas, you probably won't like this and say it's boring. But for those of you who are cinephiles or like dramas, The Kids Are All Right is guaranteed to satisfy you. 

P.S: I'm experiencing a dejavu. I think I dreamt about writing this..

Good music, the beach and weed

Interesting title, eh? You're probably wondering what this post would be about. Well I'll tell you in 3 words: WAVVES, BEST COAST. Those are the names of the two bands that I'm currently obsessed with. If you're up to date on my blog, which I doubt you are (I mean come on let's face it, why would you be up to date on what I blog about? But if you are, then I'm wrong and thank you.) you can read on a previous post about the awesomeness of Wavves. So what does the title have to do with Wavves and Best Coast? They both get stoned all the time and their bands are like, summer themed. As for the good music, you can listen to them yourselves and then you'll see what I mean.

Nathan Williams of Wavves &
Bethany Consentino of Best Coast

Oh yes, the front-persons of those two bands are dating. Basically they're the power couple of the indie-surf-rock-pop world. The point of this specific post right here, this one you're reading right now, is to tell you that Wavves and Best Coast are two of the best "summer" bands you'll find in the industry. And to put the cherry on top of that oh so tasty indie-cake is an EP titled Summer Is Forever by none other than Wavves AND Best Coast. You know when you're badly craving for say, chocolates and then suddenly someone brings you a box of the best chocolates you could possibly have? Well this is like that for me. 

Summer Is Forever. I wish.

To add to that......... they're even going on tour together. That's not good news actually since I won't even be able to watch a show, unless they happen to drop by Southeast Asia or Australia in June. Why so long, why June you ask? I have my ridiculous national exams that I've to take in order to graduate high school. I do apologize if this post seems somewhat hyperbolized. But just imagine the feeling, fair enough? Do me a favor, just google them will ya? If you said yes, then good. If no, uhm..........

Now, I'm thinking I should probably get off my laptop and hit my sociology books. Tryouts are tomorrow. I'm out.

Table for one, please.

Alone adjective & adverb : having no one else present; on one's own.

In my point of view, there are two types of loners: the first type are the people that chooses to be alone and the second one, well obviously, are people that doesn't have a choice. Ask anyone who knows me which type I am, and they would without a doubt tell you, that I'm definitely the first type. To the general eye, being alone signifies that you're lonely and have no friends or whatnot. Well to me and all those other type 1 loners, being alone means freedom, no one to bother you, no one to burden you. But just to be clear, for my friends that are reading this if there are any, I'm not saying that you guys bother or burden me when we hang out. LOL. 

Back to the point, doing things alone gives you an absolute control, no one to tell you what to do where to go, etc. Of course there are downsides to being alone all the time, for instance, when you go to the movies alone and suddenly in the middle of the movie you really really need to pee, and you know if you go you're gonna miss a part of the movie and there's no one to tell you what happened when you went to the toilet. Oh and also, you have to bring all your stuff with you because there's no one to look after it, there's no way you're gonna tell the creepy man next to you to watch your stuff, right? Before you ask, yes this is coming from a personal experience, and the answer is no, I did not go to the toilet. In fact, had to wait a whole 45 minutes before the movie ended and I finally could go. 

Taken from VF.com: Jesse Eisenberg pictured alone, yet he is a superstar.
See? Nothing wrong with being alone.
Okay, no I'm just joking. This picture is irrelevant to my post.
But I really love this picture, so I decided to squeeze it in so you don't get bored reading this post.

A little while back, a friend of mine said she feels lonely when's she's alone. That's alright, because most people do. They spend too much time being with others, so when they're alone they feel like they're out of their comfort zone. That right there, means you have a problem with your self confidence. I first did as well when I started hanging out by myself, but then I got used to it, people staring and I just didn't care, because the fact is, those people staring at you they don't really matter. So the key here, is to just be confident about yourself. Remember confidence is different than arrogance. 

Being alone also gives you the push you possibly need to take charge of your independence. Doesn't matter if you still live with your parents, well I still do. But that doesn't mean you can't be independent. In this matter, I don't mean independent as in like you tell your parents "Don't tell me what to do!!! I'm independent!!". After all they are your parents, and no matter what they will always be the only ones who truly loves you for who you are. I myself had just recently went through a "forgot-my-parents-are-my-parents" phase. But even after that, my parents still loves me and supports me. So what I mean when I say independent, I mean don't be too reliant on other people. Sometimes you need to make choices for yourself not for other people.

So, love your parents, study hard, work hard. Be yourself. Don't take shit from other people, unless those people are your family, then it's okay to take it from time to time. And if your gut is telling you that you absolutely need to do something, then do it, because most of the time, your gut is right.

Oh hello, kitty.

We've all heard of Hello Kitty. If you say you haven't, you're probably lying or have been living in a cave. So, you know Hello Kitty, the international phenomenal Japanese "cat". For my part, I'm not really a fan. I mean I don't hate it or anything but I just don't like it. When I was 5 or so it was probably cute. But now, it's just creepy. Think about it for a while, what if you accidentally bumped into a 36 year old talking cat, who collects, and I quote "cute things", has the weight of three apples and the height of five (before you ask how I know all this, the answer is simple: wikipedia) and by the way, imagine that cat wearing a dungaree that was probably meant for 12 year old girls.

But no, fortunately I did NOT bump into Ms. Kitty White.
I just happen to pass by her house.

Don't believe me? Check this picture out, folks.

That is a real house. Someone actually lives there. And yes that is their permanent humble abode. Don't believe me? Well if you're in the area you can go check it out yourself. My sister even said that it's practically a local tourist attraction, then again she was being sarcastic. If you're wondering, it's located at Lippo Karawaci, Tangerang, Indonesia.

Okay, it's not really Hello Kitty's house. But it is someone's home. Someone who is obsessed with the popular kitten obviously. That's just my assumption though. This is one of those 'can't-believe-it-actually-exists' moment for me. I mean I knew that there are countless Hello Kitty fans, but I've only seen houses like these as souvenir shops etc. not as an actual home, so when I saw it with my own eyes I was utterly surprised. This is so pointless, I know. However, I just couldn't share it.

Wavvvvves!

For those of you, who have not heard of Wavves (pronounced Waves), you should start. This is an interview from Nathan Williams, Wavves' frontman. His insouciant attitude makes Wavves what it is, awesome that is. Be sure to check them out!

How vanity is so fair

Vanity Fair always has profoundly engaging photographs. Like these two below that I've specifically chosen myself while I had nothing better to do. One of my desired career options is to be a magazine editor. Not fashion magazines specifically, but a prestigious magazine that people actually read. And by people, I mean real people who actually wants to know what's happening to the world. My preferable magazine happens to be Vanity Fair. From the name itself shows such poise and gracefulness. It would be a dream to work there, but for now I think it's going to stay a dream. Hopefully 5 or 10 years from now, it would be actualized.

Taken from vf.com

Taken from vf.com

Divinity

Camilla Belle in Alberta Ferretti
This dress is to die for

Age is only a number in your ID card

I'm going to be 18 in exactly 17 days. I'm not one to throw birthday celebrations and I'm not going to start. Well not now at least. This year means a lot to me, or so I am hoping it will be. Why you ask? For one, I graduate high school this year and hopefully by this time next year I'll be in college.. Oh which reminds me  that I don't even have a plan about what I'm going to do after I graduate. Of course I want to go to college for a higher education and all that fuss. But how am I gonna go when I don't even know what major I'm taking yet. We'll discuss that in a separate post.

Back to turning 18. Yes I do not like to throw parties, but I do like presents! I mean who doesn't right? The feeling of tearing that wrapping sheet apart as you giddily guess what's it going to be. Also, I just love the feeling of receiving a present that makes you say "Oh my God! You know me so well!". It just shows how much those people that got you those gifts, care for you. Anyways in this very particular post, I've made myself a birthday list. Hooray for me! Remember you used to make them when you were young and foolish ha ha ha.... Well I still do and here it is.

Winning The 1 million USD lottery

iPhone 4

Living in Manhattan, NY

Singer Sewing Machine

Always had a yearning for this

 Have Super Powers!

Specifically the ability to bend time and space

 A vintage suitcase

This seems pretty stupid to be on my awesome list,
but what the hell.

An awesome chair

Yeah this is also weird, but.....
Don Corleone had one, so I want one. HAHA

So there ya go! My birthday list. Yeah, I know some of the stuff that's there are pretty ridiculous but that's what I want this year, but as they say "you don't always get what you want." (unfortunately).....

Oh and one other thing that should be on my list, I want all my new year resolutions to come true. Unless you're my chairmate at class or you're really close to me, then you probably wouldn't know what my resolutions are but I'm not gonna post it here, because well that would just be lame wouldn't it? That's my sarcasm working it's magic, I know just typing this blog is lame enough. So, in the words of Ted Mosby, LOL. (For those of you who don't follow the series, you should. It's really fun to watch and that way, you would totally get my reference.)

RRREC FEST

On Saturday 8th January, I went to the National Gallery located at Jln. Medan Merdeka, Central of Jakarta, to attend the 10th Anniversary of Ruang Rupa. Overall it was a good show and we had a fun time. Admission was free so that would explain the huge crowd that showed up that night. There were different areas with different things to show. I had never been to the National Gallery before, so it was pretty amusing since it was not only gallery but also a museum. Well anyways, if it wasn't, it seemed like it.

Welcome to RRREC FEST

The Wispy Hummers performing

Documentary screening by Paul Agusta

Art exhibition

Article exhibition

So, there you go. That's how I spent my Saturday night. I want to go back there today (Sunday, 9th January) but I'm really tired and I've a lot to think about, so I decided not to go. Anyways to end this post, I'd just like to say Good Job on Decompression #10 to the whole committee that made it happen!

Ed Westwick

This picture clearly speaks for itself, so need I say more? lol

Towards a better future, or so they say....

It's my 3rd day of blogging. You can probably tell that I'm enjoying this blog stuff at the moment, that's why it has been so routine. Anyways, today was my first day back to school after the holidays and I've to say it was one of the most preposterous day ever. Not only did we relocate to a new building that is like a thousand miles away from where I live, but also the weather was terrible. It was hot and humid, and don't even get me started on the assembly hall, there were literally spider webs and dust bunnies floating in the air (this doesn't make sense, it's one of those "you-had-to-be-there-to-understand" things).

Yeah, I know it seems like I'm complaining a lot, but in this case complaining is a necessity. So the main reason of the relocation was because they're gonna tear down our old building and build a totally new one to replace it and I don't totally disagree because it was a pretty ugly piece of shit, due to the flood water being a regular visitor. But I mean come on, why we had to move 5 months before graduation is beyond me. You would think they would tear down the building immediately after we moved out right? Guess what? They didn't! In fact, it's still standing solid on the ground, not even one scratch. Since there's no way that me complaining and going on and on about how much this sucks would help, I guess I should just stop and try to make the best of it. The new building isn't so bad, they have this really spacious field and the grass is really green. For now, that's the only compliment I have about it.

Will upload pics as soon as I take some decent ones!

Treats from the Pearl of the Orient

A good friend of mine, just got back from Hong Kong. For those who aren't familiar with the term "The Pearl of the Orient", let me give you a quick history fact. When Hong Kong was still a part of the British colony, they had a sort of emblem. In the middle of the emblem, you can see a lion holding a pearl. Hence the name, Pearl Of The Orient. If you want more details, you can just google it or something.

Okay, so that good friend of mine got me my favorite chocolate in the whole wide world. I'm exaggerating a bit here, folks. She also got me a few others, but I didn't feel the need to take pictures of the others. She got me a very amusing pen as well (it's a popular cartoon character) you guys might recognize this fellow when you see the pics below.

Maltesers, bites of heaven.

Twenty-ten Mixtape

Here's a few tunes that made my 2010 what it is:

1. Horchata - Vampire Weekend
2. Sprawl II - Arcade Fire
3. The End Of The World Is Bigger Than Love - Jens Lekman
4. Monster - Kanye West (ft. Bon Iver, Nicki Minaj, Jay-Z, Rick Ross)
5. What's My Name - Rihanna ft. Drake
6. Derezzed - Daft Punk
7. Round and Round - Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
8. Revival - Deerhunter
9. Black Sheep - Metric
10. King Of The Beach - Wavves
11. Come On Sister - Belle and Sebastian
12. Jawbreaker - The Dead Weather
13. England - The National
14. Vesuvius - Sufjan Stevens
15. Shape Shifter - Local Natives
16. Tenousness - Andrew Bird
17. Not Afraid - Eminem
18. Dog Days Are Over - Florence + The Machine

There's a bit of this and that. It's not in order or anything.

Anyways, that's just me. You can download it here if you like.

New Year, Same Old.

To welcome 2011, I've decided to blog.

Don't ask why, because I don't even know the answer to that one. Usually at the beginning of a year, we have some kind of an inkling that tells us whether it'll be good or not. Alas, I didn't or do not. I celebrated 2011 at two places. First I had dinner with some friends at Potatohead, Pacific Place.

Potatohead (left to right) : Stephanie Apsari, Janet Jane, Arumi Zanira,
Kiara Nurmathias, Arti Purbo, Heda Mercy, Vanessa Vinsensia

It was fun, the food was wondrous as was the place and the people.
My second round of celebration was at 365, Kemang with another different group of friends. I kind of enjoy that place. Not too big not too small, not too pricey but not too shabby either. For an "Eco-Bar", you could say it's pretty neat. By 3am, January 1st 2011, I was on my way to Marbella Residence, Kemang. A few of my friends had opened up a room there so I decided to tag along. The room was favorable, and by favorable I mean if there was only 2 people staying in that room. Sadly there was seven of us. Me and 2 of my friends stayed up watching TV and talked, by 6am I was too tired to pretend that I wasn't so I got a cab and went home.

Okay. That's it for now.