2012 is just a day away. So, it's now time for... Other new year resolutions?? :p 
Well, let's ask ourselves, what had the last 11 months given us?
Honestly, to me, maybeee... not much.


Though surely there have been changes... Times of changing directions, reevaluating, and growing.
Am I truly the person I want to be? 
What do I want my footprint to be in this life?
Where do I choose to focus my time and attentions?
BIG and important questions!


There're still some unfulfilled dreams... Unkept promises.. Unsaid words. 


Okey, why don't we make a brief 'to-do-' thing list for 2012? Let's:
1. Wake up earlier, sleep less time.
2. Spend more time with your family. Love them. More than ever.
3. Smile more, sing more ;)
4. Be grateful. Appreciate small things. (Uhm, yeah. Looks like this one's hard?)
5. Eat happily, eat healthily. (Oh! This one's the hardest! ;p)


... and after all,


6. Maybe we shouldn't take this life (too) seriously. No one gets out alive anyway, right?


I'm wishing you all a blissful year ahead, with lots of unexpected beauty and happiness.


Happy New You!


Love,
Indira

"Verily we belong to God, and to God we return."

He who creates, and He who takes away.
To our beloved uncle and father,
M. Salim Siregar,

TMP Kalibata, December 27, 2011


Selamat jalan, Pakde.
best prayers are with you.

I don't understand how some people are enjoying provoking each other and being such two-faced.

This Saturday morning, I woke up to this gloomy feeling and disappointment that breaks my heart, I don't know for how many times, when I know that instead of trusting me, someone I care about just trusts the one I know stabs him on the back. Someone who ironically never meant any sincere friendship towards him. God, please open his eyes out of this naiveté. Please do.

Think of something really hard we've been through in the past.
Well, we've survived it.
We're alive, aren't we?
Now, think about the next time we're going through a really hard time.
We'll pull through.
We'll survive. Because we are strong.
Our skin may tear, our bones may break.
But our soul? It can never be irreversibly damaged.
Just have faith.


Have a nice day all... Keep up the good work!


Indira

Either a wishful thinking or mindless dreaming, 

November the 28th,

Still gets me back to last year's December,

And it still feels like it was just yesterday.

Extraño el tiempo que ha pasado, extraño cuerpo cerca del mío.

Indira

November 22, 2011

I'm very happy that we finally had the chance to gather and have this birthday treat of Mbak Seruni, Mbak Aci, Nova and Mbak Irma. A quick but, undeniably, precious and fun time for us all.

Thanks for the wonderful almost-a-year ups and down we've been through.

May this togetherness always last.

We'll survive the next three years.

With love,

Indira

And, I'm only human.

We're human, whose sometimes are so afraid of looking at each other's eyes and say, "I'm tired. I'm broken. I'm fallible."
Afraid to be associated with coldness, unworthiness.
Well, at the very time, I'd say, "H*ll it all."
H*ll all forced smiles, polite handshakes, and those thousands of I'm fine, thankyous.
We're humans. 
We're meant to feel.. We're meant to fall.
We're meant to cry.
We're not made of stone, or metal. 
Because we're flesh and bones.
With boiled blood courses through our cold, clammy hands. 
So, if we shall hide these human parts of ours, then what's else left to show?


Indira

I want you all to meet this lovely man,

The one who recently turned 59.

The one who always teaches me what hardworking is.

The one who tells me that if we stick to what we're doing,

 what we love, then we'll succeed.

The one who always reminds me, "Setiap orang sudah punya rejekinya sendiri,"

so why bother envying others?

I remember he told me how he proposed Mom,

He bought her a necklace with his very first salary. 


* * *

The one who introduced me to one of my passions... Photography.

Tracking back the old days, when I still in my seventh grade,

it was the first time he handled me his analog Nikon FM camera.

* * *

Here's some of his old shots back when he was studying in States,

J. F. Kennedy Museum, Boston MA, 1991

House of Wax, Buena Park, CA 1990 

Now, he always tells me that my snaps are a lot better than his ;P

* * * 

Once, he said that he really wishes that I'd be studying at Harvard someday.

Oww, that's tough Dad! ;p

* * * 

He's the reason that I am,

My father.

November the 5th, 2011

Happy birthday, dear Bapak.

You know I love you, big time.

Indira

Eid-Adha 1432 H

This year's Eid-Adha was celebrated at Tulnek's house in Cinere.

Tulnek is Tulang Menek. It's in Bataknese, which means..  Little uncle. 

Which means.. Youngest uncle. 

Anyways, leave it. That's just some information ;p

As in every family's gathering, it's Tante Mala who cooked the meals.

Her nasi Kebuli was the champion that day!

Spaghetti Aglio Olio for lebaran? Hmm... Why not? ;)

Bakwan malang.

The drinks and cheesy fruit salad.

The boys' room.

Unlike Aunty, Grandma and Mom...

The boys always cursed me when I captured them :p

Pakde had just come.

We're happy that he's getting healthier each day.

Tante Mala just made her own breakthrough. 
A home made Tiramisu with the Luwak coffee.

Tell me where would you find this kinda dish, 
unless at my Uncle's place! :D

Look how the boys didn't want to miss the bites.

Here she is... Our favorite chef ;*

We weren't the full-team that day. 
Yet, it always warmed me being with them.

Happy Eid all! Be blessed.

Lots of love,

Indira.  

Just randomly browsed, and got this funny pic.

Picture courtesy of Tumblr.com

If you take a look carefully at the materials needed to make this book shelf,
Not only will this add some extraordinary ambience to your room,

it also will save you lot of cash compared from buying a huge heavy cupboard.

Georgeous. And simply... friendly to your pocket.

Love it!

New idea for my future dream library. What do you say? ;)

An unplanned dinner the three of us had in Ocha & Bella Resto in Wahid Hasyim.

I was also having tries of my new 35mm fix lens  ;p

Have a look...

 

It's an Italian resto with a homy interior.

Been quite long time I've never been in to a fine dine,

then I asked Nia and Ira to come along.

 

The concept of open kitchen in this place pretty much gives itself uniqueness.

O&B is also famous for its pizza, yet we haven't tried any.

Nia ordered Linguini al Cartosio..

The baked linguini with prawn, squid, clams and mushroom.

Not really fitted to my tounge tough. The smell of the herbs were too strong :S

I was looking for pasta,

then Gnocci al Sugo d' Anatra was my pick that night. BEST!

The homemade potato with duck sauce. Costed me 80 bucks :(

Yet, it worth the price.

Chai Iced Tea for the drink.. Milk tea added with cinnamon powder and jelly.

We were actually full,

But no, we refused to go home without having the finishing touch!

One portion of Profiterole for dessert.

Three pieces of profiteroles with whipped cream and chocolate glaze.

And yes, it was the right choice. This dish didn't fail us.

Nice place...
Uhmmm yeaaah... Good-yet-quite pricey food... :p
Well, overall... Great time, best companion!

What a night ;)


x.o.x.o,
Indira

Fifteen about me, then about you.

Hello, how has your day been?
Eid Mubarak 1432 H, everyone!
Taqaballahu minna wa minkum.
I hope you had a blissful Eid ul-Fitr and happy holiday with your loved ones.

* * *

Okay sooo, to begin this month's post,
I'm kinda recalled of an old fashion stuff.
 Remember the tagging game? The random facts about yourself...
What about playing some of that? I'll tag some friends, but now I'll go with mine first.

Psssttt, keep it yourself, will ya? :p

1. I always heart a house with wooden floor and white door.

2. I love green tea. In any way it's processed into.
From ice cream to car's perfume.

3. Places I always wanna go back to: Boston, Melbourne, Paris.

4. Only very few know that, I'm a mottephobic.

5. My dream destinations: Maldives and Venice.

6. I don't like to see the closing credit of a movie.
In such way I don't understand, it makes me sad.

7. I adore cartoon characters, who's, effortlessly~funny.
 Ice age's Elly? Nemo's Dori? Sponge bob's Patrick?

I know you'll agree with me ;)

8. I love to analyse people's name.
And wonder why their parents named them that way.

9. My father, my lifetime's role model.

10. I dislike guys with their sleepy voice.
Hey, go wake up early! Then greet us, "Good morning"

11. Not literally a claustrophobic, but I'd prefer to park my car outdoor instead at the basement.

12. I believe those who love to read, write, and share their thoughts into arts, are simply good people.
To me, genuine art piece is identical to heart purity.

13. I can maintain friendships for years and years.
I even still have my close little circle of friends from elementary school.
And I'm proud of it.

14. Someone said that, I can easily giggle to dry type of humor.
Haha... True that :p

15. I hate goodbyes.

* * *

Hmm, who to tag now?
Let's start with http://cempako.wordpress.com/ first.

Wishing you a September (semoga) ceria... :)

Be blessed, all!

  

"But I can't spell it out for you
No, it's never gonna be that simple

If you just realize what I just realized..."

Just the perfect beads of words I need, I want, to hear at the very moment.
In a circumference of my silent shout.

In ambiance of drowning myself, and enjoying, my version of bittersweet-ness.

I am reminiscing August,
When there were still us and... happiness.
I am reminiscing August,
Because I know, out there, you are, too.

Yes, been almost a year now.
Hola de Agosto.

First day of the month.
First day at the policlinic.
First day of another Ramadhan.

Marhaban. Happy fasting, all...
May this start bring the blessings,

and make us all better person everyday.

Hey there.. It's me again, procrastinating assignments. With swimming words in my head, here I go~ feels like posting something.

July, July, July.

Looks like it's approaching its end.
Okay, let's say this kinda random, but I'm reminded of what happened a few weeks ago. I was home, so exhausted, that I went to bed early in the afternoon. I was like one piece of corpse until there was this knock on my door around 12 AM.
It was mom.

I knew she knew I was asleep, but she went, "Kamu masih bangun kan?"

Worries drawn so clear on her face. I knew she needed to talk.Yes. She was worry, about me. About the things I've told her a couple of times earlier. Issues regarding schools. About situation I'm facing now, that got me very insecure almost everyday. I really wish I could grab her, erase all those worries in her eyes, and say that I am okay. Though  I know exactly I am not.

At the end of our talk, she went with this conversation regarding forgiveness. About no matter how you hate a person, since this person has ruined your life, or your loved one's, just don't try to confront. Because you're just gonna be as bad as this person is. We never know what's on this person's mind, that turned her to be what she is.

I stared. It's really not an easy thing for me to do.
As I once said, it's my nature to easily forgive, but I can't forgive everything.

July is ending, Ramadhan is near, and it feels so bad that I still could not forgive someone. That I still got this loath I can't crack.

July the 9th,  2011

I was helping my friend to take some shots at her new resto in Jalan Cikini.

It's Saturday.
It's 9 p.m towards the dawn.
And it's at the Upstairs.
Enjoy the pics...

All eyes on stage, and the crowd were blown away.
No surprise that Sule, is, a good voice.
And no surprise he was, entertaining.

My plan for studying was a bit messed up today.
Hey paperwork, sorry for neglecting you.
Not really a kind of place for me in looking for fun to..
 But I made up with good shots and great companion anyhow.

So, it's me greeting you a good early morning..
Cheers,
Indira.

All images taken with Canon 60d, with fix 85mm lens.
Results weren't that bad for a Nikonian like me, eh? :p